The Daughter Of Two
by Telpei
Summary: Pg 13 for language and violence. A fic about the kids of the gundam pilots. They're preventers, and they have many obstacles preventing them from enjoying their lives. "When Trinity awoke, cobalt met cobalt. “hey dad.” The girl said weakly..."
1. Gangs And Guns

Disclaimer-I don't own Gundam wing.  
  
AN-this is the first chapter of "The Daughter Of Two" It starts kinda slow, but I think it's going to get better. Please let me know what you think. The time of this story is revealed in the chapter, and I'm not going to say anything that will give it away. This has slight yaoi mention, 1+2 and eventual 3+4. yeah, so if you don't like that kinda stuff, read it anyway because it's not really a part of the story. I don't go into detail with that kind of thing in this fic. Yeah, so read and find out…  
  
  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Chapter 1  
  
Gangs and Guns  
  
The hallways of the school were crowded. Teenagers were mingling with their friends in the public building, chatting and just plain hanging. There was one girl, however, who wasn't enjoying the 'before class' time period. Sighing as she watched her classmates talking their mouths off, she headed for her homeroom class, balancing her books carefully in one arm as she reached out with her other hand to open the door.  
  
She managed to make it to her seat without dropping anything, and she set her books in the shelf just below her desk. Pulling out her half and inch thick laptop, a birthday present from her father, she flicked it on and waited for it to boot up. She then thought of her other birthday gift. Only one of the reasons as to why she was so lonely in the school. Her other present had been more special than the laptop. It was definitely more expensive. It too had been from her father. Only, it had been from her other father. She sighed again. The second present was massive. She was also learning how to pilot it. Yes, that's right. Pilot it. She had been training ever since she was three to master the massive mobile suit. Or more correctly, to master the gundam Deathscythe Hell Custom.  
  
That was the other reason she had no friends her own age. Her parents were both of the same gender. This didn't bother her, as she had grown up with it. However, it did seem to bother her classmates. The girl's cobalt blue eyes scanned the room. The other students were starting to file into the room. It was the first day of the second semester on the colony of L1. Her thoughts turned to the other potential reasons the other teens in the colony despised her. Her parents were heroes, (no pun intended). They had saved the earth and the colonies from destruction approximately 21 years ago. She was now 15 and working for the preventers as their sole gundam pilot. Her family life at home was comfortable. She admired her fathers and held them close to her heart, for although she had been trained in the ways of war; her parents had also taught her of love. Something they had not had during their childhoods.  
  
The girl sighed again and turned her attention to the machine that was now humming purposefully in front of her. She tapped over the keys with ease, a talent that she had inherited from one of her dads. Heero Yuy, to be more precise. He always managed to surprise her, for he was still learning to feel. They had shared some special moments along with the other family member, Duo Maxwell. Whether it be at the beach, or at the ski hill, they always managed to have fun together. The ex-gundam pilots treated their daughter as a friend and as family at the same time. The three were very close.  
  
Another sigh escaped the girl's lips as she leaned her chin on her hand, still typing with the other. The teacher was talking, and she wasn't listening. She wasn't here because she needed to be. Her parents had taught her everything she needed to know. No, this preventer was on a mission. To find her partner. Although she still had no idea how she was going to find him, or her, in this mass of students. She knew most of them by name, as her parents had sent her here for grade ten in hopes that she would find some friends. "right." She muttered under her breath.  
  
Just then, her train of thought was interrupted.  
  
"Trinity…"  
  
"What?" she said calmly, keeping her eyes on the screen of her laptop. She had known that the teacher had been calling her name for the past couple of minutes, after consulting the class list. She had had this same teacher last semester for math, and now she had him for physics. Grade 12 physics. She had signed up for this course, hoping to learn something she didn't already know, and it wasn't the only grade 12 class that she had signed up for. As mentioned before, her parents had taught her everything she knew, and they weren't exactly your average high school drop out.  
  
"Please put the machine away and pay attention." The teacher said with a sigh. He was used to this type of behaviour from the long haired girl. He knew both of her parents personally, and not from the many parent teacher meetings that had been arranged.  
  
"Fine." 'Trinity' replied.  
  
"Thank you." The tall blond man replied. He was also the talk of the school. Most of the girls adored him, and the guys simply found him hilarious. He taught the maths and physics at the school, as a part time job, and he would leave every once in a while in the middle of class, and no one would know why.  
  
Trinity knew. He was a fellow preventer, and for some reason, Mr. Zechs Merquise enjoyed teaching the older students how to add and subtract. Ok, so maybe it was a little bit more complicated than that, but hey. Same difference, right?  
  
Trinity sighed again, and switched her computer off, tucking a escaped piece of long brown hair behind her ear. Many times had this 3 foot long braid been in danger, but Trinity always kept it tied back, only wearing it out on very special occasions. She then pulled out her text book, and flipped to the page assigned, ignoring the first lesson of first semester and getting her work done so she could continue with her report.  
  
*~*  
  
Later that day, Trinity stood in line at the cafeteria. Her books had been deposited in her locker, and her laptop was in her hand. She paid for her lunch, and headed for the courtyard of the school. Second period had been a boring English class. She had ignored the teacher's ramblings about the rules, and names and so on and so forth. Finding and empty table, Trinity sat and once again flicked on her portable computer. Her slightly slanted eyes scanned the courtyard, searching for trouble that could be heading her way. Finding none, she turned her attention to the report she had been working on earlier.  
  
Nibbling at her pizza, and typing away calmly, Trinity sent a few emails, finished her report, and checked for any new missions. There were none, which left the girl with nothing to do. She sighed for what felt like the fiftieth time that day, closed her laptop, threw the garbage from her lunch in the garbage bin, and headed to her first period class in hopes of finding an intelligible conversation with Zechs. It was a long shot, but at least she wouldn't be bored.  
  
However, when she rounded one of the many corners of the hallway, she ran into a guy. Or, two guys. They were both a few inches taller than she was, and they were more heavily built, although not by much. She didn't take much notice of them, not wanting them to recognize who she was and start taunting her. She didn't feel like having to knock both of them out and get all scratched up before third and fourth period. If they did bother her, she didn't want it to be now. She much preferred to have a proper fight after school, where she wouldn't get in trouble. She didn't want to jeopardize her mission. At the very last moment before they collided, Trinity's reflexes kicked in and she jumped out of the way, saving both of their lunches and her laptop. She mumbled a slight 'sorry' and continued to the physics classroom.  
  
"Hello Trinity." Zechs greeted her warmly. He was a friend of her parents, and was very fond of his co-worker, so to speak.  
  
"Hey Merquise." Trinity replied. She had made sure to shut the door behind her, for if the other students should hear this conversation, she surely wouldn't live it down.  
  
"You seem a little preoccupied. Care to talk?" He asked, motioning with a sweep of his arm towards the uncomfortable desks.  
  
Trinity grinned. "Yes of course, I can't wait to sit in those uncomfortable chairs again!!" she said sarcastically.  
  
"Ah, and Mr. Maxwell's sense of humour shines through once more." Zechs commented, with a knowing smile.  
  
The conversation continued from there, both enjoying the other's company until the before class bell rang. Trinity sighed again. "Well, I've got to run. See you around, Merquise." She said, heading for the door.  
  
"Don't worry about your partner's appearance. I'm sure they'll make it here soon enough." The blond man said.  
  
"Oh, I'm not worried. Just a little anxious to get started, that's all." Trinity replied, as she left the class room.  
  
Third period was gym, the one class where she couldn't use her laptop. But that didn't matter as she had finished her report at lunch. She got through the class ok, her slim frame hiding her true abilities. She couldn't wait until they started the hand to hand combat lessons. She hoped to find someone who was as interested in it as she was. However, that wasn't for a month or so, and they were playing basket ball now. Fourth period was mechanics. Basically an introduction on the first day. Trinity was the only girl in that class. Another of the grade twelve courses, and most girls didn't follow mechanics through to grade twelve.  
  
When the last bell of the day rang, Trinity made her way through the crowded hallways to her locker, stuffed her text books in, grabbed her bag, and headed for home. She walked from the school to her house. It took her approximately half an hour, but she couldn't stand to bus ride. So, slipping on her earphones, she headed for home and training.  
  
When she reached the exit of the school grounds, she waited for the street light to change to green so she could cross. She didn't hear the gang of kids approach her from behind, as her music was on. Her training wasn't for nothing though. It had started as self defence, as her Prussian eyed father was very overprotective. But then she had seen the gundams. They had amazed her. And so, her parents had trained her to become a pilot. The only known female gundam pilot.  
  
The gang got closer, and closer, and closer. The metallic silver of a gun glinted inside of the jacket of one of the gang members. Trinity noticed the shadows first. They seemed normal enough, as he was waiting to cross the street. It was the flash of sun against metal that alerted her senses. She slowly reached to her pocket to flick off her music. Succeeding in this task, she listened intently. They were whispering something that she couldn't hear. Trinity wasn't afraid, she was being cautious. Her job often put her in danger, as she did some work against drug dealing and illegal handling of weapons. She had started as a preventer two years ago. She liked her job, and the danger it provided. Her parents had been preventers at one time, but they were now only on call as a last resort. They had retired to train her, and their retirement had been welcomed.  
  
In any case, Trinity didn't dare glance behind her. She heard a rustle of clothing, and then a few footsteps, but if they were drawing closer or moving away, the girl couldn't be sure. However, when she heard the safety of a gun being switched off, Trinity turned slowly, eyes blazing with an anger that was unknown to her classmates. They didn't know the real Trinity. They only thought of her as some kid who was too smart for her own good. They had no idea that she had been trained to defeat a gang of druggies with a gun pointed at her heart. This is exactly what Trinity was hoping she could do as this was the situation in which she found herself now. Her heart started to beat faster as she turned to find a gun pointed at her, and five other gang members grinning wickedly as they watched the expression on her face.  
  
However, had they wanted to scare someone, they should have picked someone else, as Trinity's expression remained neutral. If anything, she might have smiled slightly at the looks on *their* faces when they saw she wasn't afraid.  
  
"Aren't you scared, little girl?" The apparent leader had asked.  
  
"No." Had been Trinity's reply.  
  
"We're going to kill you, but first we're going to hurt you." He said through a grin. A grin that was full of evil, and was enough to make anyone's blood run cold. Anyone but Trinity Yuy-Maxwell.  
  
"I'd like to see you try." She replied in a monotone, inherited from her other father, Heero.  
  
By this time the thugs were seething at her calmness, when her life was in danger. "Right then. Shoot her Danny."  
  
'Danny' hesitated…long enough to enrage his leader even more.  
  
"Shoot her. NOW."  
  
Danny had pulled the trigger.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Well, I hope you liked that. Please let me know what you think! I appreciate comments, and if you're going to leave a flame, please at least leave a reason as to why you didn't like this. I'm not sure when the next chapter's coming out. I guess it depends on who wants to hear more, eh?  
  
Aria 


	2. Just Like Family

Disclaimer-I don't own gundam wing.  
  
AN-please let me know what you think! Reviews help me to write faster!  
  
Chapter 2  
  
Just Like Family  
  
  
  
Trinity watched as Danny's finger tightened on the trigger. He pulled it slowly enough that she had time to make a slight sidestep to the right before the shot rang through the air. Trinity felt a searing pain run through her left shoulder as she tried to duck the oncoming bullet. Ignoring the pain as Heero had taught her, she stepped into a fighting stance as Danny's finger tightened again.  
  
"You missed, asshole." The gang leader said. "Shoot her again."  
  
Danny didn't hesitate this time. He pulled the trigger again.  
  
The second shot shattered the silence created by the first, although it was accompanied with a third. The third shot, however, didn't come from Danny's gun. Trinity now had two gunshot wounds. The first bullet had just passed through her left shoulder, and the second had lodged itself just below her left rib cage. Her vision blurred from the pain. She reached down and tried to stop the blood flow of the first. She never heard the third gunshot; all she knew was that someone was distracting the gang she was supposed to be able to defend herself against. "All the training, and I can't even beat a bunch of guys with one gun." She thought angrily before blackness over took her, and she knew no more.  
  
*~*  
  
When Trinity awoke, cobalt met cobalt. "hey dad." The girl said weakly. She had a feeling she was in a hospital as her senses were picking up the medicinal smells.  
  
"Hey honey." Duo replied. "You feeling ok?" he asked gently.  
  
"Don't call me that." The fifteen year old said, trying to ignore the pain that was throbbing through her body.  
  
"Don't agitate her Duo. You've never had a gunshot wound before. It hurts like hell." Came a calm voice from the other side of the room.  
  
"You're both here?" Trinity said, trying to sit up. "Great. With you two bickering at each other, I'm not going to be able to get any sleep."  
  
Heero joined the two at the bed and placed a firm hand on his daughter's good shoulder. "I don't want you to move." He said. "I'll get some pain killers."  
  
Trinity sighed in defeat and gently lowered herself back down on the pillows. "How did I get here?" she asked Duo.  
  
"Well, you've been out for a few hours now. We were starting to get worried about you. Do you remember what happened?" he asked. "If you don't want to tell me right now you don't have to."  
  
Trinity scowled. "It's not like remembering now is going to be any better than remembering later."  
  
Duo sighed and sat down beside Trinity's bed. "I'm sorry Trin, but I know how stressful remembering can be sometimes. Trust me, I've been through this type of thing before."  
  
"I know Dad, but I should have been able to protect myself. I didn't do anything to stop them, and I should have been able to do something. I mean, that's what I've been training to avoid, right?" The girl closed her eyes trying to hold back the tears. She didn't want to cry. She wasn't supposed to cry. She was a preventer, and preventers didn't cry. "It's not your fault, Trinity."  
  
Heero was back. He helped his daughter take the pain killer, and then took a step back. "You're still alive, aren't you?"  
  
"Heero and I are very proud of you Trin, and we always will be, no matter what." Duo said as the pain killers started their job, and the girl fell asleep once more.  
  
Heero turned to Duo. "She's good."  
  
"What do you mean?" The other man asked, a curious look in his cobalt blue eyes.  
  
Heero smiled slightly. "Do you remember when we first met?" he asked.  
  
"Yeah, that would be the day I saved your life, and you jumped out of a window." Duo replied with a grin.  
  
Heero glared at his husband. "That's not the point."  
  
"Then what is the point?" Duo asked. "Is it that you were a suicidal maniac? What has this got to do with Trinity?"  
  
Heero's glare darkened. "The point *is* that when you got there, the doctors didn't know that I was awake. I kept my blood pressure and my breathing low."  
  
Duo's expression became thoughtful. "yeah, now that you mention it, I remember that too. But what's it got to do with Trin?"  
  
"What do you think? She did exactly the same thing, unconsciously. She probably didn't realize she did it, but she hid her consciousness all the same." Heero replied, glancing at the now sleeping girl.  
  
Duo glanced at the monitors of the many machines hooked up to his daughter. "Yeah, she did it, and she's still doing it. Look."  
  
Heero glanced at the monitors as well. "Hn."  
  
"Yeah, yeah, I know. 'Told you so'. I love you too Heero." Duo said sarcastically.  
  
"I know you do." Heero leaned over and whispered in Duo's ear.  
  
The braided man grinned. "Well, I guess you know me too well then."  
  
"I hate to break up this moment, but I have someone here who wants to see a Trinity Yuy-Maxwell." Came a voice from the doorway. Heero backed away from Duo and glared at the man in the volunteer uniform. "Who is it?" He demanded.  
  
"The two who brought her here." The volunteer replied. They want to see if she's ok."  
  
Heero's eyes narrowed. "Duo, you stay here with Trinity. I'll go see who these guys are."  
  
Duo frowned. "They brought her here Heero. That doesn't mean they shot her." He said. "I'll go see who they are."  
  
Heero nodded slightly. "Ok."  
  
Duo followed the volunteer into the waiting room after slipping on a coat to cover his braid and his cap and sunglasses.  
  
The volunteer pointed at two boys sitting in the corner. They looked to be about Trinity's age, and they were wearing the school uniform. Duo stepped into the waiting room and sat in one of the chairs so he could observe the two boys for a minute before going over. The one on the right had pitch black hair that hung down in his eyes. It was scruffy looking, and a little shaggy. His eyes were also black, and slanted, revealing his Chinese background. He was talking to another boy who had hair that was platinum blond, with a bit of reddish brown underneath. His eyes were a shade of aquamarine that looked vaguely familiar to Duo.  
  
"Could it be?" Duo thought, his hopes soaring. He decided to wait another minute or so, just to be sure. Those two looked awful familiar.  
  
The two boys went on in their conversation without noticing Duo's entrance. The one with black hair pulled out his wallet and fished around for a receipt to show to his friend. Something else in the wallet caught Duo's attention. A flash of gold. A very familiar flash of gold.  
  
This seemed to decide Duo's decision. He stood, and headed over to the two. Keeping his eyes low, he sat across from them. They both turned to him with questioning eyes.  
  
"Agents Chang and Winner-Barton, I presume?" Duo asked.  
  
The one with black hair nodded. "Nice to see you again Maxwell." He said. Duo lifted his gaze.  
  
"Hey, watch it there kid. I'm your elder you know. It's *Mr.* Maxwell to you." Duo replied with a grin.  
  
The Chinese boy grinned back, but the blond remained expressionless. Duo knew the reason for this lack of emotion. Heero had had the same problem. It wasn't that the kid's parents didn't care. But there was a reason that the other ex-gundam pilots were still working for the preventers when Heero and Duo weren't. And all of them knew that they didn't need any money.  
  
To this day Trinity had thought that her parents had retired from the preventers. She was wrong. Trinity had been a 'mistake' in the eyes of the 5 original scientists. One of which was know sleeping peacefully underground, courtesy of a certain Heero Yuy.  
  
Maybe I should explain this a little better.  
  
Agent Chang, as we know him so far, was the first little 'experiment'. The scientists wanted the perfect soldier, did they not? So, they decided to have a perfect army. They wanted to clone a human being. Agent Chang is the first ever clone. His blood has exactly the same DNA as Wufei Chang. However, their personalities are completely different. Wufei raised his son after learning how to live from a certain 'braided baka'. Therefore, Agent Chang was brought up in a healthy environment, with bombs and missiles, and of course, the gundam Nataku.  
  
Next in line was Trinity Yuy-Maxwell. The scientists decided that cloning just wasn't enough. They had to accomplish something more, so they decided to create the ultimate soldier by joining a Yuy DNA with a Maxwell DNA. Scary combination? Definitely. However, they did not set the gender of this clone, and she obviously came out female. This repulsed the scientists. They didn't want a girl, they wanted a boy. So, Doctor J called up Heero to give him the results of the experiment. And I quote…  
  
"Hello Heero…" started Dr. J.  
  
"Dr. J… What are the results?" Heero asked, anxious to know if he had a child.  
  
"The experiment did not go as planned…I'm afraid that test #2 will have to be eliminated." Dr J answered.  
  
"Isn't test #2 a human?" Duo demanded, pushing Heero out of sight of the vidphone.  
  
"It would appear so, yes. However, she is of the wrong gender. We can do nothing with a girl."  
  
"Bullshit." Duo again. "You can do all you can with a girl that you can do with a boy. In fact…"  
  
Heero pushed Duo out of the way. "I'll be right over to collect test #2. Do. Not. Kill. Her."  
  
And Heero terminated the transmission.  
  
Things just went downhill from there. Heero went to collect his daughter and Dr. J and the other scientists did not appreciate his actions. The outcome you ask? Dr. J with a bullet through his heart, and a certain Heero Yuy and a certain Duo Maxwell minus their preventer badges.  
  
Had these certain ex-preventers known of the scientists next plans, none of them would have lived to tell the tale. However, they did not know of test #3. This test being of course, Agent Winner-Barton. A mixture of obviously Quatre Winner and Trowa Barton. Test #3 went unknown for the first ten years of his life, and by then, there was nothing anyone could do to reverse the damage. Test #3 had undergone the same treatment as Heero. The scientists had played with his mind, and deprived him of his childhood. Quatre and Trowa had taken care of that little ordeal, but, enjoying their jobs there had been no bloodshed. (although Duo had come close to killing the remaining four). Pilots 3 and 4 had taken in Agent Winner-Barton, but had been unable to teach him of caring as hard as they tried. Test #3 had left home, joining the preventers, at the age of 13. Quatre and Trowa had respected his wish, and had let him be, though it had practically broken the poor boy's hearts that they hadn't been able to help their son.  
  
Trinity however was unaware of any of this. Her fathers had decided against telling her, for fear of loosing everything they had. The other two 'experiments' had a general idea of what had happened, though they did not know of Trinity. To get on with the story, Agent Chang pulled Duo out of his thoughts.  
  
"How is the girl?" he asked.  
  
Duo grinned. "Do you even know her name?" he asked mischievously.  
  
Agent Chang shook his head. "I'm not the one to tell you what happened, since I don't know the whole story myself. Nate and I brought her here after some druggies shot her twice. The police just had to ask us some questions which is why we didn't come sooner."  
  
Duo nodded his head. "I understand."  
  
"What are you doing here?" Ian Chang asked.  
  
Duo grinned. "Well, if you really want to know, the girl's name is Trinity. Trinity Yuy-Maxwell, to be more precise."  
  
Ian's jaw dropped. "I thought she looked familiar. Well, let's go see her then. She's almost like family."  
  
The three headed to Trinity's hospital room. Duo warned them that she'd just dozed off, so she might not wake up for a while.  
  
When they reached the room. Heero did a double take. "Long time no see." He said after a moment.  
  
Ian grinned, but Nate remained silent, his expression unreadable. Heero knew the feeling. He'd had trouble restraining Duo from going to kill the remaining scientists when they'd heard the news, as he'd wanted to send them to their graves himself, but Quatre had convinced them otherwise. The five original pilots hadn't seen each other since Heero and Duo had been kicked off the preventers.  
  
Heero led Ian and Nate to the caff, and Duo stayed with Trinity, since she had shown no signs of waking any time soon. The stoic man bought the two teens something to eat, and they sat and chatted for a while before heading back to the room.  
  
When they arrived, Trinity had woken up. Duo had helped her to sit, and she was propped up on a few pillows. When the two boys entered the room after her father, Trinity gasped. "you!" she cried, recognizing them instantly.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Well, there's chapter two. I hope you liked it. It was probably really confusing. Anyway, let me know what you think! Leave a review!  
  
Aria 


	3. Partners

I don't own it, don't sue.  
  
Chapter 3  
  
Partners  
  
  
  
"Shh, calm down Trin." Duo said to his daughter. Her breathing and heartbeat had returned to normal, and although she was still in great pain, Trinity had refused to take any more pain relievers. She wanted to stay awake to meet the two who had 'rescued' her.  
  
The brunette glared at the two boys. "I didn't need your help." She muttered, venom practically dripping from her voice. The two were exactly the same guys that she'd almost run into in the hallway earlier that day.  
  
Ian frowned. "Is that all the thanks we get for dragging you all the way to the hospital, after saving your butt?!"  
  
Trinity's scowl darkened. "I didn't need you to save me, thank you very much. I'm very capable of defending myself."  
  
Ian's eyes narrowed. "Didn't look like it from where I was standing."  
  
Trinity fought the urge to jump out of the bed and punch this guy right in the gut. Of all the nerve! She didn't need any help! She was capable of doing things by herself! She could have beaten the crap out of those thugs!  
  
Duo knew that his daughter was in no condition to be agitated, and Heero sensed the growing tension in the room. Both ex-gundam pilots knew that these guys weren't here for no reason, since their families lived on different colonies.  
  
"Trin, please calm down" Duo pleaded.  
  
"Dad, I can handle this myself." Trinity practically breathed the words, her voice menacing and low.  
  
"Oh, Daddy got to help his daughter?" Ian purred the words, but they hit home.  
  
A sense of dread filled the room, and a stony silence enveloped the occupants. Trinity forced herself to breath.  
  
One breath…  
  
Then two…  
  
"First things first." She said, in the same low and menacing voice. "I was *not* aware that there was a species lower than dust mites. Thank you for enlightening me."  
  
Ian growled, but his response was cut off by a yuy-deathglare, from two occupants of the room. And he knew just how dangerous gundam pilots could be. Male or female.  
  
Another breath.  
  
And another.  
  
"Second…I was in no need of your assistance, and I am repulsed by your presence. Get out… NOW."  
  
Her voice never left the low threatening tone. Ian felt a chill run up his spine. He turned to leave, but he noticed a flash of gold from the table where Trinity's belongings that were salvaged from her bloody mess of clothes lay. Her wallet was lying open on the table.  
  
Ian then walked to the door, Nate close behind him. But as he was leaving the door, Ian smirked. He turned and paused. Duo's eyes were on the floor, and Heero was glaring at him. Trinity too was watching his departure with ice in her eyes.  
  
"Whatever you say…partner." Was all the Chinese boy said before he left the room, not leaving time for Trinity to respond.  
  
Nate hesitated for a split second before following his friend out the door.  
  
*~*  
  
Later that week, Trinity awoke once again to a searing pain. One that she was starting to get used to. She had been released from the hospital two days ago, when her condition had been stable enough for her to walk, however slowly. The girl sighed. She'd totally screwed up her mission as far as co-operation was going to be concerned. Her parents had informed her of the identity of the two guys, and she hadn't been happy. In fact, all she could feel towards this 'Ian Chang' was hate.  
  
"Maybe I just have to get to know him better…" Trinity thought for the fiftieth time before getting out of bed. She pushed the indiglo on her watch. "3:00 am. Great. Just great." Another sigh escaped her lips as she made her way slowly across her room to her desk where her laptop lay. She ignored the pain that was overwhelming her senses and grabbed the light machine. She then headed for the back door of the Yuy-Maxwell house, intent on heading for the hiding place of the gundam Deathscythe Hell Custom.  
  
Once outside, Trinity took a few breaths then started the long journey through the massive lot. Although their property was on a colony, Duo had insisted on installing a park for the kids. There was also a small orphanage/church funded by Duo, even though he no longer had any income. Trinity sighed again, still ignoring the pain as she headed through the park to the small clump of trees just beyond it. She stopped before she met the tree line, and opened her lap top. Balancing it on one arm, she flicked it on, and waited for it to boot up. The girl didn't notice the dark shadow that crept between the trees, watching her every move.  
  
Trinity stifled a yawn, and typed in a few words. A creaking sound associated with gears turning, and metal rubbing against greased metal sounded through out the silence. Trinity watched as a door opened, revealing a hidden underground hangar. She then descended the steps that led into the darkness, typing at her laptop some more as she went. With the push of a few more keys, the lights flickered on, and a shadow slipped inside unnoticed by the tired girl. Another click of a few keys and the door closed behind Trinity, locking herself, and the unknown shadow, into the spacious gundam hangar.  
  
Trinity headed for deathscythe. The gundanium alloy shone under the florescent lights. The girl breathed in it's musky smell, then typed in another password on her laptop.  
  
The hatch opened, and Trinity grabbed the foothold, and entered the cockpit.  
  
Again she breathed in deeply. Oh, how it smelled of her father in the small space. He was everywhere. Duo had become the Deathscythe in his own way, sharing every living breathing moment with the machine. Trinity sighed, a sigh of content. It felt right somehow, being in this gundam. Then her eyes narrowed.  
  
"Are you sure?" She asked.  
  
Silence.  
  
A voice that only she and Duo could hear answered soundlessly.  
  
"Where?" She breathed, flicking a combination of switches on the dashboard.  
  
Deathscythe's green eyes flashed to life, and the hatch closed.  
  
"I know you're out there…" Trinity whispered. "It's only a matter of time before you make a mistake…"  
  
Then it happened. A movement in the left of her screen.  
  
Without warning, Deathscythe jumped to life, arm extended and ready to kill.  
  
A figure dressed in black emerged, and flashed a preventer's badge.  
  
However, instead of relaxing, Trinity tensed. Her soldier instincts kicking in.  
  
The figure looked up with oriental eyes.  
  
Trinity relaxed slightly and once again forced herself to breath.  
  
She slowly eased Deathscythe back into it's original position and switched it off.  
  
Opening the hatch, she grabbed her laptop and made her way to the ground.  
  
"What are you doing here?" She demanded when her feet touched the floor of the hangar.  
  
She was in no mood to deal with this right now.  
  
Ian tried to stay clam. He'd come to apologize for the sake of his job, but this girl still managed to infuriate him.  
  
"Maybe a better question is why you aren't in bed."  
  
Trinity glared at the boy standing in front of her. "What I do with my time is none of your business." She stated, using the same icy tone she'd applied in the hospital.  
  
Ian's expression remained unreadable. "And what I do with mine is none of yours." He said.  
  
Trinity's glare began to weaken as her vision started to blur again. "not now!" she thought furiously. "It is my business if you're stalking me." She managed to keep her voice steady somehow.  
  
Ian sighed. "Look, I didn't come her to argue with you." He said.  
  
Trinity raised one eyebrow. "right." She replied before heading over to the desk where the main computer system lay. The girl winced as she sat, her aching muscles and bandaged wounds protesting her every move.  
  
She placed her laptop beside the computer and flicked it on. Reaching into one of the drawers, she pulled out a cable and connected the two computers.  
  
Ian watched her hook up the two machines with little interest. "You shouldn't be down here." He said.  
  
"yes, mother, I'll go back to bed *right* away." Trinity replied sarcastically.  
  
Ian rolled his eyes. "It's bad for your condition."  
  
Trinity looked at him. "My *condition*? Why would you give a shit about my condition?"  
  
Ian had no answer for that question. The cobalt blue were glaring daggers at him. He walked over to the desk and stood behind Trinity to watch what she was doing.  
  
Her fingers flew over the keys, hacking into files to get any type of information was a piece of cake for the girl.  
  
Ian watched, now curious, as she hacked into *his* files with obvious ease.  
  
"You should get some better security on these." She suggested, no emotion in her voice.  
  
Ian scowled. "Like yours are any better."  
  
"I couldn't even hack into my own files, and I know the programs used to protect them." Trinity replied. "You wouldn't get past the first password."  
  
"That's what you think" the Chinese boy replied.  
  
Trinity glanced at her watch again. "just past 3:30" She mumbled, while saving the files she'd found on her 'partner'. She made a mental note to herself to do a more thorough search later.  
  
Trinity got out of the chair. "Prove me wrong then." She said, seating herself on the desk beside the computers.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
please let me know what you think so far! And if you have any suggestions for insults and whatnot, please leave them in a review, or you can email me at duos_only_chick@hotmail.com  
  
Thanks.  
  
Aria 


	4. The Meaning Of Hate

I don't own it, don't sue  
  
Chapter 4  
  
The Meaning Of Hate  
  
  
  
Ian glared at Trinity and took a seat in front of the two connected computers. His trained fingers also flew over the keyboard with accuracy. He did a search on 'Trinity Yuy-Maxwell' and came up with nothing. Glancing at the girl no the table, he noticed her examining her finger nails with boredom clearly etched in her expression. Ian growled and increased his efforts tenfold. He hacked into the preventer's computer system and did another search on 'Trinity Yuy-Maxwell'. This time, he had some results. He chose one of the links and clicked on it.  
  
"Password Please" the computer beeped at him. Right. He could do this. Typing in a few codes, he tried to work around the password.  
  
"Beep Beep" The computer rebooted.  
  
Ian sighed with relief. When you do something right, the computer beeps. And it reboots. He'd done this a million times before, why had he been so worried? Trinity's sureness of herself? Possibly. He chanced another glance at the girl. She was now looking over her shoulder at the screen, no expression on her face.  
  
"I'm in." He said.  
  
Trinity looked at him. Her eyes betraying her feelings. They simply screamed "sure sure". Ian tensed. What if this was what he was supposed to think. That he had gotten past the first password. When really, it was just a cover up. "nonononono" his mind was screaming at him.  
  
The computer finished booting up, and Ian logged into the file again. He chose the same link, and was surprised to see that the first password was taken care of. He rapidly repeated the process that he'd just done, and the computer beeped and rebooted again. Now Ian was confused. He glanced again at Trinity. She was leaning on her hands, which were propped behind her on the desk, and her head was leaning back. Her eyes were closed, and she definitely looked as if she had better things to be doing.  
  
The computer finished loading again, and Ian dealt with the third password in the same fashion in which he had dealt with the first two. The computer rebooted.  
  
He waited, staring anxiously at the screen. The preventer information accounts were only allowed to have three entry passwords. The computer finished loading. Ian logged onto the preventer site and hacked into the information files once again. Trinity now was watching as well. She was sitting cross legged on the desk top, watching the screen, then turning to glance at him. Ian was definitely sensing that something was wrong. She was too calm.  
  
Trinity cleared her throat. "Maybe I should have warned you…"  
  
Her sentence was cut off by a loud screeching sound coming from the computer. It didn't stop. The computer was frozen in this awful sound. Ian tapped away at the keys. Nothing. He clicked the mouse. Nothing.  
  
Trinity sighed, and got off the table. "move." She said, her voice straining to be heard over the noise coming from the computer.  
  
Ian obeyed. There was nothing else he could do. The power switch hadn't worked. Trinity took his place at the computer desk and her fingers flew over the keys. After a moment or so, the screeching stopped. Trinity turned the swivel chair in Ian's direction and then stood. "told you so." She said, brushing past him and heading once again for Deathscythe.  
  
She turned half way there, and cleared her throat, bringing Ian from his thoughts. "Maybe I should have warned you, that neither of my dads were able to hack into my files."  
  
Ian watched her leave. His blood was rushing to his head in anger. He sat once again at the computer. Hacking into the preventer files, he decided that instead of trying to work around the password, he'd try to guess at the password. Choosing something that seemed logical, yet not too easy to guess, he typed in the word "family". The computer asked for a second password. Amazed that he'd gotten it first try, his second guess was "Heero Yuy". The computer asked for a third password. Ian typed in "Duo Maxwell". The files opened. Except, instead of information on Trinity, there was a list of websites. At the top of the list was a text. It read:  
  
If you are reading this, I suggest you turn off your computer now. Don't say I didn't warn you.  
  
Trinity  
  
Ian chose to ignore this remark, deciding that it was just to scare people off. He chose one of the links and positioned the mouse above one of the web urls. However, before he had time to click, the screen flashed violet, and stayed that way. In the middle there was another text, written in a darker shade of purple. It read:  
  
You were warned. Never try to invade on my files *ever* again.  
  
Then the awful screeching sound started up again. The power button didn't work, neither did the reboot. He typed. Nothing. He clicked. Nothing.  
  
Then Trinity was beside him, telling him once again to get out of the way. "move." He obeyed once again, and she typed away for another few minutes. The sound stopped, and the page with the links returned. Trinity hurriedly turned off the computer.  
  
Then she turned to face Ian. "Why on earth didn't you listen to the warning?" She demanded. She spun around again, and unhooked her laptop. Pushing a few buttons, the doorway above opened again. Trinity sighed and made her way to the steps. "When that door closes, I can guarantee you I won't be happy if you're still inside." She then headed up the stairs.  
  
*~*  
  
When Trinity reached her room, Duo was sitting on her bed waiting for her.  
  
She placed her laptop on the desk. "Hey dad."  
  
Duo frowned. "Where were you?" he asked.  
  
Trinity didn't look at him. "In the hangar."  
  
"Why were you down there?" Duo was sitting on Trinity's bed. She obviously had done something to upset herself in the hangar, and he wanted to know what it was.  
  
Trinity kept her eyes on the ground. "I went to see Deathscythe." She said.  
  
Duo frowned again. "And…"  
  
"Ian was there."  
  
Duo sighed. "Continue."  
  
Trinity started pacing the room, but stopped abruptly at the pain it caused. Duo noticed her wince, and he got off the bed. "Sit." He said.  
  
Trinity obeyed.  
  
"Talk."  
  
"Well, he was there, and he wouldn't tell me why. So I started hacking into his files."  
  
"With him standing right there"  
  
Trinity nodded. "So, then I suggested that he should get some better security."  
  
Duo sighed again and shook his head. "And I guess you egged him into trying to get through to your files."  
  
Trinity looked up at her ceiling. "Of course."  
  
"And I take it he didn't get through."  
  
Trinity looked at her father. "You and Heero couldn't get through. As if that loser would be able to."  
  
Duo shook his head once again. "You're messing up your partnership." He said.  
  
Trinity looked back up at the ceiling. "Do I look like I give a damn?"  
  
Duo glared at his daughter. "You should. For the sake of your job, please try to cut the guy a little slack. I mean, nobody's perfect. And you're going to get yourself and him in trouble."  
  
Trinity didn't say anything, although both of her wounds had decided to start throbbing again. "I've got to get back to sleep dad." she said.  
  
Duo nodded. "I know you do. Here, take this." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a bottle. He unscrewed the cap and got one of the tablets out, and passed it to his daughter.  
  
Trinity took it and swallowed it, then got back underneath her covers. "I wonder if Quatre, Trowa and Wufei are here." She said. "You and Heero would probably like to see your old friends again, huh?"  
  
Duo smiled. Trinity was always thinking of other people, no matter how many problems she had. "Maybe." He said, reaching down and brushing a stray hair out of Trinity's face. "Now try to get some sleep."  
  
Trinity nodded, already half gone.  
  
Duo smiled again before leaving the room and shutting the door softly behind him. A pair of arms wrapped themselves around his waist. Recognizing the touch, Duo leant back into the other man's arms.  
  
"She'll figure things out." A voice said gently in his ear. Duo shivered from the effects of the warm breath.  
  
"I know she will, Hee-chan." Duo replied as he was led back to his room.  
  
*~*  
  
Within two weeks, Trinity was back at school. She hadn't had any more run ins with Ian, although Nate had dropped by once with a message from the preventer's headquarters. Trinity had noticed the lack of feeling in the boy's actions, and she'd decided to do something about it. If anyone would learn how to hack into her files, it was definitely going to be Nathan Winner-Barton. He reminded her slightly of her short haired father.  
  
Once again, the girl sighed as she headed down the familiar hallways of the school. The only difference was, that now people seemed to notice her. She was known as the 'girl who had dodged two bullets'. She noticed Ian to the side, leaning against one of the lockers. He was surrounded by girls. "oh, he has a fan club." Trinity thought icily as she passed him without a second glance. She had noticed Nate standing off to one side, completely alone, laptop in hand. It appeared that Ian was ignoring him.  
  
Trinity felt a twang of hate towards the raven haired boy. "hm, not an unfamiliar feeling" She mused. How could he just leave his friend like that? So, Trinity headed over to Nate, grabbed his hand and pulled him with her to her locker so she could ditch her extra books.  
  
"What are you doing?" The semi blond asked.  
  
Trinity grinned. "Being annoying, what else?"  
  
His expression remained emotionless as he let Trinity lead him down the halls to her locker. She dropped his hand upon arrival at the metal rectangle, and she fumbled with her lock. Kicking her locker, it popped open, and Trinity set her bag and discman inside. She grabbed her physics book, and locked her locker again.  
  
"Grade 12 physics?" Nate asked.  
  
Trinity nodded. "I was hoping to learn something, and the homework kept me busy while I was at home.  
  
Nate followed the girl as she headed to her classroom. "hoping to learn something?" he thought about this for a moment, and decided to make a file about his partner as soon as he had the chance. He would need some information about her in order for them to be able to cooperate properly.  
  
As if sensing his thoughts, Trinity stopped him as he turned to leave when they reached the classroom. "Um, Nate, I need to tell you something." She said, pulling him inside the deserted room.  
  
Nate followed and stood, waiting for Trinity to place her books on her desk.  
  
"Alright, I hacked into some of your files the other day, you know, looking for info and stuff, and it didn't mention anything about Sandrock or Heavyarms. Do you know how to pilot a gundam?" She asked.  
  
Nate contemplated the question for a moment, trying to figure out if he should reveal the information. After a minute he nodded his head slowly. "Although no one else knows. I didn't tell Sally Po."  
  
Trinity's expression turned thoughtful. Sally Po was the Lieutenant in charge of their division of preventers. "Alright." She said. Nate turned to leave, but Trinity wasn't finished with him yet. "wait a sec." she said.  
  
Nate stopped, hand on the doorknob. "yes?" He asked.  
  
"If you were planning on hacking into my files, you might want me in the same room with you. Don't ask me for an explanation though, I'd turn to Ian for that."  
  
Nate nodded, and left the class. Zechs entered soon after.  
  
Upon noticing Trinity in the room, Zechs smiled.  
  
"Nice to see you back, Trinity." He said.  
  
"Glad somebody noticed." Trinity murmured, attention mostly on her laptop.  
  
"The whole student body has been talking about you." Zechs said. "I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who's noticed your return."  
  
Their conversation was cut short as other students started filing into the room, and with them came the happy chatter of normal teenagers. Trinity tried to keep her attention on her laptop, but found it extremely hard with all this noise, and mentions of 'guns' and 'bullets' kept reaching her ears.  
  
Trinity blocked out the noise, and focused on her report. However, someone had different plans for the braided girl.  
  
"How come you never wear your hair out, sweetheart?" came a voice in her ear.  
  
Trinity's first instinct was to punch the guy's lights out. She calmed herself, deciding that she much preferred to be invisible. She turned her attention to the guy that was sitting beside her. Their tables were fashioned to sit two people comfortably, but this situation was definitely not comfortable for a certain gundam pilot.  
  
"How bout you come to the dance with me Friday, huh?" The guy asked.  
  
Trinity shook her head. "No thanks."  
  
"Awww…how come?" he asked.  
  
Trinity looked him up and down, taking in his size. He was heavily built, with dark brown hair, and amber coloured eyes. "I don't know you name." She said.  
  
The guy grinned. "It's Andrew. So now you can come with me."  
  
Trinity sniffed. There was a familiar smell reaching her nostrils. "alcohol." She thought. The smell was familiar because her parents sometimes just needed to forget. She couldn't blame them either. With the memories they had…  
  
"No, I still don't think so." She politely refused.  
  
The guy frowned. "Why not sweetheart?"  
  
Trinity thought fast. Then Ian entered the room. "What's he doing in here?" She thought. He made his way over to Zechs, and handed him a sheet of paper. "A message for Marquise? Why wasn't I assigned to give it to him?" She watched as the two exchanged a few words, then Ian made his way over to one of the desks.  
  
"Hey, are you listening to me?"  
  
Trinity was snapped from her thoughts. She turned back to Andrew. "Um, sorry, I kinda blanked out for a minute there, what were you saying?"  
  
"I was saying that you have no real reason to not come with me."  
  
Trinity had a feeling that this was going to get ugly.  
  
"Hey, Trin!"  
  
Trinity recognized the voice. Ian was making his way over to where she and Andrew were sitting. Her eyes narrowed, and Andrew stood.  
  
"Why didn't you just say you had a boyfriend?" He spat out, and headed over to the group of guys that were chatting on the other side of the room.  
  
Trinity growled and narrowed her eyes. "This is not good." She thought.  
  
Ian ended up at Trinity's desk to find the girl typing away furiously at her laptop. He received an unhappy "don't call me 'Trin'." From the braided girl. Ian chose to ignore the tone of this remark, and sat himself beside Trinity.  
  
"How come?" He asked. "It suits you."  
  
"I don't care if it suits me. Duo is the only one that ever calls me Trin. Understood? Good." Trinity glared at the computer screen.  
  
Ian sighed. "Look, I wanted to talk to you."  
  
"About what?" Trinity growled.  
  
"I wanted to apologize." He said.  
  
Trinity looked at him, snorted, and turned back to the machine on her desk. "You really like your job, don't you."  
  
Ian felt his anger flaring up again, but he quickly pushed it back down. "I mean it Trinity. I don't want us to hate each other when we have to work together."  
  
Trinity chose to ignore this, and turned her icy eyes on the boy beside her. "What are you doing in my physics class?" She demanded.  
  
"Your physics class? Right. Our physics class you mean."  
  
Trinity moaned. She'd been afraid of that. "Fine then. But don't expect me to actually enjoy your presence or anything."  
  
"Now why would you want to do something stupid like that?" Ian mumbled to himself. He'd apologized. It wasn't his fault that their missions were going to get totally screwed up now. Suddenly, his laptop beeped. He pulled it out and opened it just as Trinity was putting hers away.  
  
"I'm on call. I'll be back in half an hour." She said, before standing and heading to notify Zechs that she was leaving.  
  
Ian nodded, and flicked on his laptop. The beep had notified him of an incoming email message. He opened it, and his jaw dropped. He had two new emails. One was from earlier, he'd forgotten to check it. The second was from Trinity.  
  
He opened the first email and scanned it quickly. It was a mission from the preventers. He had to go with Trinity that evening to bust out some illegal weapon handling. Nate was invited along as well for the 'outing'.  
  
He eyed the second message carefully, before deciding that she wouldn't have sent him anything that would disrupt class. He opened it cautiously. The screen flashed purple. Ian's finger strayed towards the power key.  
  
The dark purple lettering appeared. It was in binary code. He scanned the message, picking enough letters out to be able to read it as it filed across the screen. They were instructions on how to get into her files. "great." He muttered. So much for gaining her approval. Nate had talked to him that morning. He'd said that Trinity was going to be in his physics class and that she'd said she was 'hoping to learn something new'. This hadn't surprised him. Nate had also said he was planning on meeting Trinity after school to hack into her files. He had taken the warning as a challenge. "typical." Ian thought. He'd told the semi blond what had happened when he'd tried and he'd wished his friend good luck.  
  
Sighing, Ian set to work on hacking into Trinity's files with the information she'd left him. He was careful to do everything perfectly the first time, for he had no idea how to get the screeching sound to stop if it started.  
  
*~*  
  
Later that day, in the busy caff, Trinity once again bought her lunch and headed for the courtyard. This time, however, she had a follower. Not to mention how people kept staring at her. Ian was with his fan club again, and Nate was with Trinity. The two headed for the courtyard and settled down at one of the tables to eat their lunch. Trinity was glad to have some company, however quiet he may be. "What's your favourite season?" Trinity asked.  
  
Nate looked at the girl before answering. She was typing away at her computer, and nibbling at her pizza. "Summer." He replied.  
  
"Why?"  
  
Once again Nate paused. He wasn't used to people asking him questions for their own interest. "Because it's not cold."  
  
"Neither is fall"  
  
"Too many colours in the fall."  
  
"Oh."  
  
Then silence. Trinity cursed under her breath. They had a mission that night.  
  
She glanced at Nate. He was staring at his hamburger with a blank look in his eyes. "you ok?"  
  
"huh, oh. Yeah." Nate grabbed his hamburger and took a bite. He chewed slowly, watching Trinity's frustrated expression intensify as she typed on.  
  
Trinity felt the eyes on her and she glanced up. Nate quickly averted his gaze and the girl grinned. "You want to ask me something, don't you?"  
  
Nate looked at her in amazement. "How did you guess?"  
  
Trinity shrugged. "Just a hunch. So, what is it?"  
  
"I wanted to know..." He stopped, unsure of himself. Why was he so nervous to ask her? It was easier than any of the missions he'd had to do.  
  
Trinity waited for him to continue.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
well, please let me know what you think! Should I continue?  
  
Aria 


	5. Mission Accepted

I don't own it, don't sue.  
  
Chapter 5  
  
"About the hacking..."  
  
Trinity grinned. "You can come over to my place tonight if you want. You know, after school? Then we can head to the mission thingy after."  
  
Nate nodded.  
  
Trinity then returned her attention to her laptop. After a few moments, Ian joined them. He received a glare from the girl.  
  
Ignoring the rude gesture, he sat beside her, and picked away at his lunch. He was eating spaghetti. He played with the soggy noodles before clearing his throat. "You guys are kinda quiet." He said.  
  
Nate too had noticed growing tension in the group once Ian had joined them. He didn't know what it was that caused the anger between the two.  
  
Trinity sighed when she heard a familiar voice beside her.  
  
"Hey sweetheart."  
  
"Go away Andrew." She said without looking up from her laptop.  
  
Andrew pouted and seated himself beside Trinity. Nate and Ian watched with growing interest. They were wondering if Andrew was going to escape from this ordeal without a bloody nose.  
  
"So, Chang, you brining little miss sunshine with you to the dance Friday?" Andrew asked over Trinity's shoulder.  
  
Trinity winced.  
  
Ian looked surprised, but he didn't say anything.  
  
Andrew twirled a finger in Trinity's escaped piece of hair. She quickly pulled it out of his grasp and tucked it behind her ear.  
  
"You know, since you're going out and everything." Andrew finished.  
  
Ian's jaw dropped. Then he saw the look on Trinity's face. She was concentrating *very* hard on her laptop, wincing as Andrew traced her jaw line with a finger.  
  
Ian draped an arm around Trinity's waist, and planted a kiss on her cheek. The group of fan girls that were hanging off to the side wailed in agony, and Andrew backed off. "Of course we're going to the dance together. Aren't we Trini-babe?"  
  
Trinity tensed under Ian's touch, and his actions and words surprised her. Had he realized that she didn't like this guy, or did he really feel that way? However, the words "Trini-babe" totally pissed her off, and she had to fight her instincts to push him away. A glance at Nate told her he was confused as well. Deciding to play along, so that she didn't end up having to go with Andrew, Trinity placed a smile on her face.  
  
"Of course." She replied to Ian, looking up into his eyes. Her smile slowly evolved into a dreamy look. Then she pulled her gaze away, and turned back to her laptop, noticing with relief that Andrew had left. She also noticed that the group of girls that had been following Ian around were gone as well.  
  
"It seems we scared those groupies away." She said, still typing.  
  
Ian nodded. "Thank god. They were really starting to get annoying." He removed his hand from Trinity's waist. "So, I guess we have a dance to go to then. You'd better get a dress sometime soon." He suggested.  
  
"Mmhmm." Trinity sighed. She'd seen this coming. "I think I've already got one."  
  
"Kay. I'll pick you up at 7 then." Ian said.  
  
"Alright."  
  
They sat in silence until the before class bell broke into their thoughts.  
  
Nate stood and left without a word, unnoticed by Ian and Trinity, who were still packing up their things.  
  
Trinity then got up and grabbed her bag, and headed for the entrance to the school.  
  
"Oh, and Trinity..." Ian said, also standing.  
  
"Yeah?" She asked.  
  
"Don't forget your gun." Ian then brushed past her and entered the crowded hallways.  
  
Trinity grinned. "I think I might actually enjoy this dance."  
  
*~*  
  
After school, Trinity searched the halls for Nate. They were supposed to be going to her house...so where was he?  
  
Then she spotted the mop of semi blond hair through the crowds. Smiling, she made her way over to where Nate was, which turned out to be his locker.  
  
"hey partner." She said, leaning against the locker that was beside his.  
  
"Hn."  
  
"Gee, that sounds familiar..." Trinity mused. "My dad says that a lot." Getting this guy to lighten up a bit was going to take a bit of work.  
  
The two stopped at Trinity's locker before heading down the streets to her house.  
  
"Hey Dad! I'm home!" Trinity called out when the two entered her house.  
  
Duo came sliding down the railing. "Hey Trin." He said. He grinned mischievously at Trinity when he saw Nate enter the house after his daughter. "Hey Nate."  
  
Trinity sighed at her father's level of `maturity'. "Right dad. Nate and I are going to the hangar. Is Heero home?"  
  
Duo nodded. "He's in his office. But don't ask me what he's doing in there..."  
  
Trinity looked questioningly at the ex-pilot. "Well, alright. I'll be up to see him in a minute." She then turned to Nate. "You want something to eat?" She asked.  
  
"Hn."  
  
Duo's expression of happiness changed to one of concern. "Trin, do you think I could have a private word?"  
  
Trinity nodded. "Sure thing. Just let me get Nate something." She led the semi blond into the kitchen, and grabbed some chocolate chip cookies from the cupboard, and the milk from the fridge.  
  
She grinned sheepishly. "I've had it everyday after school since kindergarten and I'm not about to stop cause I'm in grade ten." She said, motioning at the stools on one side of the counter. She placed the milk and cookies on the table, and grabbed two cups from the shelf. "Help yourself, I'll be back in a minute." Trinity said, before heading into the other area of the house to find Duo.  
  
"In here Trin" Duo called from Heero's office.  
  
Trinity entered the room. "What did you want to talk about?" She asked.  
  
Duo frowned. "Well, Nate seems a little unemotional."  
  
Trinity grinned. "You noticed too? Wow. You really are observant." She said sarcastically.  
  
"Trinity, this isn't something to joke about." Heero said.  
  
Trinity scowled. "I know."  
  
"Right then. You have to get him to loosen up a little, or it could be bad for his health." Duo said.  
  
Trinity sighed. "I've been trying, dad, but he doesn't seem to want to loosen up."  
  
"Just don't give up Trin. I know you can do it." The braided man replied.  
  
Trinity nodded and headed back down to the kitchen, unaware of the worried glances that were exchanged in the room she'd just left.  
  
Entering the kitchen, Trinity smiled at Nate. She grabbed a couple of cookies, and poured two glasses of milk. She handed one to Nate, and told him to take a couple cookies as well. They then headed out the back door with cookies and milk in hand.  
  
When they were half way across the lawn, Trinity cursed under her breath. "Forgot my laptop." She told Nate. Taking his empty cup, she told him to wait there while she went to get it.  
  
When she returned, she led Nate to the edge of the tree line and typed in the password that opened the door, and the password that turned on the lights. She left the door open, however, and didn't close it once they'd entered.  
  
The two headed to the desk where the main computer lay, and Trinity switched it on. Nate seated himself in the swivel chair and Trinity once again sat with her legs crossed on the table top.  
  
Nate entered the preventer site, and searched Trinity Yuy Maxwell. He got the screeching sound the first time, however, he listened to the warning the second time.  
  
Trinity grinned. "smart move." She said. "Here, try this..." She typed in a few things, binary code, of course, then sat back as Nate caught on and finished the sequence with ease. The screen flashed violet, and slowly faded.  
  
"Welcome" The computer beeped.  
  
Trinity sighed as she lowered herself from the table. She made to head for the exit of the hangar, but a hand stopped her.  
  
She turned to face Nate, and with her motion, a stray piece of hair escaped from her braid again.  
  
Nate slowly reached up and brushed it behind her ear with a gentleness that made Trinity feel all warm and fuzzy inside.  
  
She smiled up at him, feeling that somehow she had managed to break through to the inside...  
  
Nate then seemed to realize what he was doing, and he took a step back.  
  
Trinity's hopes were smashed. She sighed, and grabbed her lap top.  
  
"C'mon, we'd better get back to the house." Trinity said. "We're going to that club tonight, remember? I've got to get ready."  
  
Nate nodded, and followed the girl out of the hangar.  
  
"I've got to go home and get changed." Nate said as they neared the house. His eyes were staring straight ahead.  
  
Trinity nodded and smiled. "Wouldn't want to go in uniform..."  
  
Which is exactly what Nate was wearing. The white dress shirt had been untucked upon departure from the school, and the grey pants were slightly wrinkled. His burgundy tie had been loosened, and was now dangling around his neck. The top two buttons of his shirt were undone, revealing smooth, creamy skin.  
  
It was a tired looking uniform, but it was a uniform none the less.  
  
Trinity's was in just as much of a bad state. Her blouse had also come untucked, but a burgundy kilt replaced the grey pants. Her black socks were still pulled up, however, and her black shoes were slightly scuffed.  
  
So, Nate headed home, offering to give the braided girl a ride and pick her up in an hour, and Trinity got ready for the mission.  
  
*~* AN *~*  
  
`What is the mission' you ask? It's simple. Trinity Nate and Ian have to infiltrate a club inconspicuously and bust out some illegal handling of drugs and/or weapons.  
  
*~* fic *~*  
  
When Nate arrived at the Yuy-Maxwell residence, exactly one hour after he'd left, he rang the doorbell and listened for the footsteps that would approach the door to let him in.  
  
A few moments later, a grinning Duo opened the door. "Hey Nate." He said, letting the boy enter the house.  
  
Nate nodded his greeting. "Is Trinity ready?"  
  
Duo shrugged. "Dunno...YOU COMING TRIN??"  
  
Nate winced at the unexpected loudness of Duo's voice.  
  
"Yeah, yeah, hold on..." came the muffled cry from upstairs.  
  
Duo grinned again. "Yup, she definitely gets her grooming abilities from me." He said.  
  
"Hn."  
  
A slight thumping came from the second story of the house, followed by a slight curse.  
  
Trinity then came bouncing down the stairs.  
  
"Where on earth did you put your gun?" Duo asked.  
  
Trinity sighed. "I never asked you or Heero where you kept yours in that spandex." She said.  
  
Duo winced. "Fine." He replied. "Turn around."  
  
Trinity moaned and spun around for her father's inspection. She wore dark jeans that hung low on her hips, and clung to her slender frame. She was wearing a backless forest green top with straps that crisscrossed over her shoulder blades. Around her neck hung a silver chain that matched the small silver hoops that hung from her ears. Her eyes were decorated with green contacts.  
  
Her three foot long hair hung loose around her shoulders. Two curled strands hung in her face.  
  
Duo raised one eyebrow. "all I have to say is you'd better put your jacket on before Heero comes down."  
  
Trinity grinned. "yeah, I guess." Heading for the closet, she grabbed her `sweater coat' [1], and slipped it on. It was navy blue, to match her jeans.  
  
She then noticed Nate in the corner of the room. "Hey, I was wondering where you were." She said. "I heard the doorbell."  
  
Nate was wearing tan khaki pants, along with a navy blue t-shirt.  
  
"Think we're going to fit in?" Trinity asked with a slight chuckle.  
  
Nate headed for the door. "we should get going."  
  
Trinity nodded. "Just lemme say bye." She ran up the stairs again, heading for Heero's office.  
  
"I'm leaving dad." she said.  
  
Heero looked up from his computer. His jaw almost dropped at the sight of his daughter. Almost.  
  
Her outfit was accompanied with a green eyeshadow, that exaggerated her newly coloured eyes, and sparkles decorated her cheeks.  
  
"Be careful." He mumbled.  
  
Trinity grinned. "Aren't I always? See you later." She then left the room and retreated down the stairs.  
  
"Bye." Heero called, turning his attention back to his laptop.  
  
Trinity retraced her steps to where Nate was waiting for her. She planted a small kiss on Duo's cheek.  
  
"See you." She said, following Nate out the door.  
  
They both got into Nate's silver convertible. *yes he can drive, he knows how to pilot a goddamn gundam*  
  
"Don't forget we have to get Ian." Trinity mentioned.  
  
Nate nodded, and in a few minutes, they pulled into the Chang driveway.  
  
"I'll get him." Trinity offered, hopping out of the car.  
  
She shut the door behind her and headed for the house. She rang the doorbell once.  
  
She heard a scuffling from inside, and the door opened. Trinity found her self at the point of a `sword like thing'.  
  
"Hey, watch it with the knife." Trinity said. "I'm looking for Ian."  
  
"I'm here." Came a voice from inside the house.  
  
"Who the hell are you?" The man with the sword asked.  
  
Trinity placed a finger on the dull edge of the weapon and gently pushed it down. "not a pincushion." She replied. Trinity then glanced at her `attacker'. He was a Chinese man, and his hair was pulled back in a tight ponytail. His oriental eyes looked her over, judging her. Trinity gasped. She recognized him...  
  
"Well, what's your name?"  
  
Trinity reached into her pocket and pulled out her thin wallet. She flashed her preventer's badge. "Hello Wufei Chang." She said. "I am agent Trinity Yuy-Maxwell"  
  
Ian then pushed his Dad out of the way. "I'll be back late." HE said, shitting the door in Wufei's face and taking full advantage of his father's state of surprise.  
  
Ian then brushed past Trinity, heading for the convertible. He jumped into the front seat and Trinity clambered into the back, muttering something about `no manners' and `stole my seat'.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
please leave a review! I'd like to know what you think of the three kids, Trinity Ian and Nate. Emails are also welcome at [1]duos_only_chick@hotmail.com and duet_22@gundamwing.org  
  
Thanks!  
  
Aria  
  
References  
  
1. mailto:duos_only_chick@hotmail.com 


	6. Haunting Memories

I don't own it so don't sue.   
  
Chapter 6  
  
About ten minutes later, the silver convertible pulled into the alley of the dance club. The neon signs were flashing, providing light in the dark area.   
The three climbed out of the car and then looked around for their monitoring crew. They soon spotted the preventer vehicle, parked off to the side. The black van was almost invisible against the darkness of the alley.   
Trinity tapped three times on the back of the truck.   
The door was opened from the inside.   
"Hey Merquise." Ian said from behind Trinity.   
"Hi guys, ok, look. Here are your id's to get in. these…"  
He handed them each a little microchip thing.   
"Go in your ear. I'll be able to speak to you through them and hear what you're saying."  
He handed Trinity a small silver hairclip. "it's got a video camera in it."  
Trinity clipped the thing in her hair. Nate received a pair of glasses, and Ian had been given a magnetic earring.   
Zechs then showed them how he was going to monitor them, and the status of their mission. "If you get into trouble, I'll call backup but you should be able to do this by yourselves.   
The three then headed for the entrance of the club, and the dangers that awaited them inside.   
"ID"  
Trinity flashed her newly found ID, claiming that she was 21, and the muscly door man let her inside. Ian and Nate followed close behind.   
The three headed for the dance floor. The music was pounding in their ears, the base beat vibrating through the floors. Lights were flashing everywhere, on and off, on and off, flash, move, colour, colour, blink, on and off, colour…  
"Perfect environment for headaches" the girl thought grimly, as she pushed her way through the crowds.   
Glancing back at her partners, Trinity gave a nod, and they split up, each heading a separate way.   
Trinity soon found herself leaning against one wall, trying to think straight. Her eyes moved back and forth over the crowds, searching for an exchange, a briefcase, money, anything that would give away what she was looking for.   
Nothing.   
*~*  
Nate wasn't having much luck either. He had headed for the bar area, and although it was a little quieter, the music still thundered around him.   
And no sign of the illegal handling.   
*~*  
Ian had forced his way over to the other side of the dance club, his trained eyes searching the crowds.   
A glint of metal caught his eye.   
Ian tried to signal to his partners, but they either couldn't see him or weren't looking in his direction.   
Grimacing, Ian worked his way over towards the person he had been watching and bumped into him, or her (He hadn't gotten a clear view) rather harshly. The person fell to the ground and Ian offered her a hand up.   
The girl tried to hide her face and receive the offered help at the same time.   
When she was on her feet, she tried to turn away from Ian, but he grabbed her hand and pulled her around to face him. Ian plastered a grin on his face.   
"Dance with me?"  
The girl looked hesitant. "I dunno…"  
"Oh, c'mon, just one…" Ian pleaded.   
"I'm supposed to be meeting someone…"  
"Their loss that they aren't here. I am. Now c'mon!"  
"Fine." She agreed reluctantly. "But just one, and it has to be quick."  
As if on cue, one of those slow mushy songs came on.   
Ian grinned. "Must be my lucky day." He thought, scowling to himself mentally. The things he did for his job…He moved in, placing his hands on her waist, while she wrapped her arms loosely around his neck.   
"So, what's your name?" Ian asked, trying to pinpoint Trinity or Nate's position. If this chick's partner came now, he'd have a little bit of a problem on his hands.   
"Deanna" the girl replied, again rather hesitantly.   
"Deanna who?" Ian purred.   
"Deanna…" She paused. "Can't say."  
"Deanna Can't Say. That's an interesting name. C'mon babe. I'm not gonna bite you." / yet / Ian thought to himself. He could feel the girl shaking nervously beneath his touch, and she kept glancing over her shoulder.   
"Catalonia." The reply to his question was unexpected. Ian held back the urge to push her back to get a better look at her.   
"Catalonia eh? I think I might've heard that name before…" Of course he had. How many times had his father told him of the war 21 years ago, and how a Dorothy Catalonia had played one of the major bad guys. Not to mention she'd stabbed Quatre Winner, one of Nate's dads, with a fencing sword.  
"Possible. Anyway, I've got to jet. Maybe I'll see you around."  
As she backed away, Ian loosened his grip. A glance at the retreating figure told him this was gonna be an easy chick to follow. She had platinum blond hair that hung around her shoulders and eyes that were an icy shade of grey. Her right eyebrow was pierced, and a silver hoop glittered under the lights. Her eyes were heavily shadowed with black mascara, and her outfit was mostly black as well. Her top was a loose black long sleeved shirt whose sleeves flared at the ends, and she was wearing a pair of tight fitting black jeans.   
Ian sighed and started his pursuit. "Deanna" was heading for the bar area. The Chinese boy quickly picked out Nate and signalled to him that he'd found one of the people they'd been looking for.   
*~*  
Trinity, on the other hand, was having a little more difficulty. She had spotted a guy in one corner of the club. He was sitting at a table that was enveloped in shadows. Every once in a while, a 'customer' would go over and sit across from him.   
They would talk for a minute or so,   
Then they would exchange something,   
Then the 'customer' would leave.   
Trinity had watched 5 exchanges, and she was just thinking about how she was going to do things properly, when something different happened. The man sitting in the corner got up and headed straight for her, his brown eyes boring into hers.   
"Danny…" Trinity muttered, eyes wide with surprise. She had definitely not been expecting that.   
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
well, for those of you that forgot, Danny was the guy who shot Trinity remember? Ok, good. Now you can let me know what you think! Leave a review please!  
Aria 


	7. Mission Accomplished?

Hey everyone! I'm really sorry that I haven't updated for so long, but my friend's been pushing me to get Magical Destiny finished, and well, I'm sure most of you know the feeling. You know, when you have more than one fic, and there are those days where you just don't feel like typing…  
  
Anyway, time to get on with things.  
  
Disclaimer-I don't own it so don't sue.  
  
  
  
Chapter 7  
  
Missions Gone Wrong  
  
*~* At the Yuy-Maxwell Residence *~*  
  
Riiiiiiiiing…Riiiiiiiiiiing…Riiiiiiiiiiing…  
  
Duo cursed as he lunged for the phone. "I'm coming, don't hang up!" he cried.  
  
Riiiiiiiiing….  
  
"Hello?" Duo was breathing heavily from the long trip to the phone.  
  
"Maxwell, you sound a little out of breath."  
  
"Wu-man? Is that you? Hold on a sec…" Duo flicked a switch and Wufei's face appeared on the screen of the vid-phone.  
  
"My name is Wufei."  
  
"Yeah, yeah. That's nice Woofie. Anyway, where are you?" Duo grinned. It was great to hear from his fellow Gundam pilot again, even though he was probably half way around the world, and then some.  
  
"Why don't you ask your daughter?"  
  
"Trin? But how would she know?"  
  
"Tell me Maxwell, did you teach your daughter anything? She called my Katana a knife! A KNIFE! I know it sounds hard to believe but…" Wufei rambled on about injustices and weak women for another few minutes before he noticed that Duo was paying no attention whatsoever to his rant. "Maxwell, are you listening to me?"  
  
"Huh?" Duo looked at the screen. Wufei was glaring at him. "What's the question?"  
  
Wufei sighed and shook his head. "Helpless…completely helpless…"  
  
Duo pouted, and then saw Heero enter the room. "Hee-chan, Woofie's calling me helpless…" he whined.  
  
Heero glanced at the screen, his lips forming a slight smile. "Hello Wufei."  
  
Duo latched himself onto Heero's arm, and remembered that Wufei had mentioned Trinity. "What were you saying about Trin? Maybe Heero can make some sense out of it…"  
  
"Trinity?" Heero looked confused.  
  
"She was here to get Ian."  
  
"Wait a minute." Duo interrupted, letting go of Heero's arm. The Japanese moved his fingers, trying to resume the circulation of blood in his arm. "Where's here?" Duo asked.  
  
Wufei rolled his eyes. "Where do you think? Here is here."  
  
Duo sighed. "You know what I meant. What colony are you on?"  
  
"L2"  
  
"What? And you didn't call us earlier?!? Next you're going to tell me that Quatre and Trowa are here too…"  
  
Wufei smirked. "Just as dense as ever, Maxwell."  
  
Duo stuck his tongue out at the Chinese man, and decided to change the subject. "Why are you calling?"  
  
"To see what kind of trouble your daughter is getting my son into. I sometimes wonder if the scientists added too much Maxwell blood."  
  
It was Heero's turn to sigh. "First of all, Wufei, our daughter is of no threat to Ian. Second, they're on a preventer mission, and Trinity is just as qualified, if not more so, as your son and she has just as much of a right to be there."  
  
"Yuy, you have lost your sense of judgement. Women are weak. Next you're going to tell me that she can pilot Wing Zero."  
  
Duo grinned evilly, and repeated what Wufei had said earlier with a hint of sarcasm in his voice. "Just as dense as ever, Chang. And women are not weak. You will notice that if Trinity came into contact with your sword, she didn't break down into tears and start crying. She can also handle the zero system, and she can pilot Wing Zero, but she prefers Deathscythe." Duo smirked at the look on Wufei's face. "And since you, Trowa, and Quatre are all here, you'll have to come over for dinner tomorrow."  
  
"Do I have a choice?"  
  
"No. Do you have the number of where the other two are staying?"  
  
"Yeah, hold on a sec."  
  
Within the next few moments, Duo had acquired Quatre and Trowa's phone number. He ended his call with Wufei, and called pilots 03 and 04 while Heero got some ice cream out of the freezer.  
  
When Duo had finished making arrangements, he turned around to see Heero standing at the counter eating vanilla ice cream out of its container.  
  
"Naughty Heero. You should use a bowl." Duo scolded, heading over to get some for himself.  
  
Heero raised one eyebrow as Duo stuck a finger into the open container and conveniently dripped ice cream down his shirt. "oops." He mumbled as he tried to wipe it off.  
  
Heero stifled a laugh. "Serves you right." He said.  
  
Duo stuck his tongue out at the other man, and then headed upstairs to change his shirt. Heero sighed, and headed back up to his office. He sat in the chair for a few minutes, then flicked on the laptop.  
  
Once it had booted up, he hacked his way into the preventer files, and eventually tapped into the mission status team's records.  
  
He watched as Trinity's camera was pulled from her hair and smushed between two fingers.  
  
"Not a good sign." Heero breathed, shutting of the laptop and leaning back in the chair. He glanced at his watch. 9:30pm. It was still early. His daughter probably wouldn't be home until after midnight. That was another 2 and a half hours, at least. Heero sighed, got up, and headed for his and Duo's room to see if the braided baka needed help with his shirt.  
  
It didn't surprise him at all to find Duo on the bed, arms tangled in his shirt and a goofy grin on his face.  
  
*~*  
  
12:00 came and went, with no sign of Trinity's return.  
  
Duo was positioned by the window, and Heero was sitting on the couch in the same room, laptop balanced on his knees, fingers typing away with ease. A certain type of fatherly worry filled the room.  
  
12:30  
  
1:00  
  
1:30  
  
At 1:37, a silver convertible pulled into the driveway. Duo nodded to Heero, who turned off the machine in his lap and placed it on the coffee table.  
  
Trinity entered the house as the car pulled out of the driveway. She glanced at her parents, a look of hurt in her eyes. They did notice the bruise that was forming on her right cheek. She headed up the stairs to her room. Heero and Duo listened to the small creaks in the floor that betrayed Trinity's position. They listened as her door was shut softly, and they listened as the bed springs squeaked under the teen's weight.  
  
"I take it it didn't go to well." Duo mentioned, sitting beside Heero on the couch, his bright smile nowhere to be found.  
  
Heero frowned. "I wonder what went wrong…"  
  
*~*  
  
Trinity knew what had gone wrong. She was going over every hellish moment in her head that very second.  
  
Danny, or wait, no, Danny's older brother had been the drug dealer that they'd been looking for. Unfortunately, he'd recognized Trinity and he hadn't been happy. After all…she'd been the reason his brother was in jail…  
  
*flashback*  
  
"Danny is in jail because of you." The brown eyed man spat out, emphasizing his words with a punch in Trinity's stomach. Three of his "buddies" were standing around her, preventing her escape. The girl hoped that Zechs had notified Ian and Nate… "Thought you were smarter than me, huh?" Another punch. "Thought you could outwit me?"  
  
Trinity winced as his fist connected with her right cheek. Sure, if he had been alone she could have taken him out. But four of them? It just wasn't possible…  
  
*end flashback*  
  
Then Ian and Nate had come, with some girl. They'd helped her get rid of those guys and they'd arrested them and brought them outside.  
  
However, she and Ian had "talked". Quite possibly the worst part of the night.  
  
After the arrest had been made, the three had bumped into Andrew. He'd accused Nate of imposing on Trinity's and Ian's "date". "Three's a crowd" He'd said, then he'd attempted to punch Nate. That hadn't gone over well, and they'd left with an unconscious Andrew in the parking lot.  
  
Trinity sighed, remembering what Ian had said. His insults had hurt.  
  
*flashback*  
  
"Did you ever wonder how you came to be? Your parents are both male Trinity Yuy-Maxwell. You were and still are a science experiment."  
  
"And you aren't?"  
  
"At least the scientists still wanted me. Your parents got kicked off of preventers because of you. They should have let the scientists kill you. You're nothing but a weak woman. Not even that. You're a childish girl Trinity, and I hope you'll realize what's best for everybody and drop out of preventers."  
  
*end flashback*  
  
A tear rolled down Trinity's cheek. Maybe she should just drop out. It wasn't like she couldn't get another job. And besides, that's twice no that she couldn't protect herself. "I'll have to quit before Sally fires me." Trinity mumbled, before she fell asleep, exhausted from the night's events.  
  
However, Trinity's sleep didn't last very long. She awoke a few hours later, shivering from the coldness of her room. Grumbling, she slowly headed for the adjoined bathroom and turned on the shower.  
  
Wincing as she peeled off her clothes, Trinity stepped into the shower and sighed as the hot, clear liquid fell over her tired body.  
  
Your parents got kicked off of preventers because of you.  
  
Ian's words repeated inside her head again and again. Pouring a considerable amount of shampoo in her hand, she tried to forget that they were true and very real.  
  
10 minutes later, Trinity washed the shampoo out of her hair and chose the conditioner bottle from the shelf. Like Duo, Trinity took extreme precautions with her hair, and washing it usually made her feel better.  
  
Usually.  
  
Tonight, however, was an exception. Climbing out of the shower after having rinsed the conditioner out, Trinity grabbed a towel off the rack and wrapped it around her body. Taking another towel, she dried her hair as best she could, and headed back into her room.  
  
Slipping into her pyjamas, Trinity braided her still wet hair and reached over to turn out her light.  
  
…your parents got kicked off of preventers because of you...  
  
"How can that be? They retired, didn't they?" Trinity said to herself. Her eyes slid shut, but her mind refused to rest.  
  
…childish girl…  
  
…best for everyone…  
  
…drop preventers…  
  
No, she was definitely not having a good night.  
  
*~*  
  
The next morning, Trinity stumbled into the kitchen at roughly 7:30.  
  
"Shouldn't you still be sleeping?" Duo asked. He was sitting at the table with Heero, and they both had a cup of coffee.  
  
"Couldn't sleep." Trinity grunted. Her hair, still wet from her early morning shower was going crazy, ends flying everywhere except where they were supposed to go.  
  
Pouring herself a glass of orange juice, the teenager joined her parents at the table.  
  
A stiff silence consumed the next few minutes, and seemed to last for an hour.  
  
Finally, Duo cleared his throat. "I take it you're not going to school today."  
  
"Gee, ya think?"  
  
Heero took a sip of coffee. "My, aren't we in a good mood today." He commented.  
  
"Yeah," Duo agreed. "You completed your mission last night. What's eatin' ya Trin?"  
  
Trinity sighed. It was going to be a long day. She could feel it. "Nothing."  
  
"Well, obviously something's wrong." Duo's voice was filled with concern. "Want to talk about it?"  
  
Trinity glanced at each of her parents. "I'm going to go into work today, to hand in my resignation form." She mumbled.  
  
"Why would you do that?" Duo asked. Heero pushed back his chair and headed for the freezer. He'd noticed Trinity's cheek was worse this morning. It was turning a lovely shade of purple. She most likely had bruises elsewhere as well.  
  
"Because I can't protect myself." Trinity attempted to explain. "You weren't there last night, but Danny's brother was the drug dealer we were after."  
  
"Wait a sec. Danny's brother?" Duo asked. Heero returned to the table with some ice in a plastic bag. He handed it to Trinity, who placed it on her cheek.  
  
"Danny as in the guy who shot me Danny." Trinity said. "So, his brother, Max, recognized me. He and three other guys sort of just came out of nowhere. I was caught off guard, and Ian and Nate 'came to the rescue' I guess you could say."  
  
"And because of this you're resigning from preventers." Duo said.  
  
"Among other things." Trinity replied.  
  
"Like what?"  
  
"Well, Ian said…"  
  
"Ian Chang?"  
  
"Yeah. He said…"  
  
"Why does it matter what he said?"  
  
"Well, if you'd just listen…"  
  
"Any son of Wufei can't have said something worth listening to."  
  
"Dad, just listen!"  
  
"Oh, sorry Trin."  
  
"Ian said that it would be best for everyone if I …"  
  
"If you dropped out?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Ha. So I was right. Anything a Chang says isn't worth listening to." Duo frowned. "Why'd he say that? And you know it's not true Trinity. You're a gundam pilot. Not everyone can do that."  
  
"Not to mention the zero system." Heero added, a smirk on his face."  
  
The long haired girl smiled sadly. "Thanks, I needed to hear that."  
  
Duo grinned, and poked her nose gently, receiving a glare from his daughter. "Well, you should get washed up, and maybe go back to bed. We're having company for supper."  
  
Trinity sighed. "You didn't invite Ian, did you?"  
  
"Sorry Trin, but we had to." Duo said.  
  
Trinity nodded and got to her feet. "I guess I'll try to get some more sleep." She mumbled. Heading for the exit of the kitchen.  
  
*~*  
  
When she had left, Duo turned to Heero. "Do you think she found out?"  
  
"About the scientists?" Heero asked.  
  
"Yeah." Duo replied.  
  
"It's possible. We should get around to telling her before Ian does it for us."  
  
"I'm really starting to not like that kid." Duo grumbled, fingering the gun located in his pocket.  
  
"Now Duo," Heero said, glaring at the braided pilot. " You know Wufei would have your head."  
  
Duo grinned. "But I have a professional bodyguard…"  
  
"I am not going to protect you from an enraged Wufei. We both know it's not a pretty sight."  
  
Duo sighed. "Yeah, I guess you're right."  
  
Heero nodded. "I'm always right."  
  
Duo rolled his eyes, then stood and headed for the many cupboards of the kitchen.  
  
"What are you doing?" Heero asked, raising one eyebrow.  
  
"Well, since we *are* having company for supper, and you can't cook worth beans, I need to get started."  
  
"It's only 8:00 in the morning."  
  
"And if you don't bother me, I might have something edible ready by the time Quatre gets here an hour early, as usual."  
  
"Point taken. I wish you luck." And with that, Heero left the kitchen.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Well, that certainly is a long chapter. Hope you people don't mind too much. Heh. The next one is written, but I have no idea when it's coming out. The plot's starting to thicken though…  
  
Dun dun duuuuun….  
  
Hehe…leave a review! Please! 


	8. Life Threatening

Ok, sorry for the long wait for this chapter guys!! I really didn't mean to leave it this long. Hehe…please don't hurt me!!  
  
Sherpock-and what am I supposed to tell the angry mob?  
  
Ulp…there's an angry mob?  
  
Sherpock-I'd say.  
  
O boy. Um…don't let them in…  
  
Angry mob-There she is!! Get her!!!  
  
Uh oh…well, here's the next chapter…*runs away*  
  
Sherpock-maybe she should learn how to pilot a gundam…I'm her muse by the way. Ok, on with things.  
  
Disclaimer-I don't own it so don't sue.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Chapter 8  
  
  
  
"Ding dong"  
  
Duo came bounding down the stairs and flung the door open. "Quatre!!" He then preceded to glomp his friend, and only when Trowa tapped him on the shoulder did he let the small blond go.  
  
Quatre caught his breath, and grinned at the ecstatic man in the doorway.  
  
"I take it you're glad to see us?"  
  
Duo's expression brightened and he nodded vigorously. "Come on in"  
  
Quatre and Trowa entered the house, Nate following them silent and emotionless.  
  
Duo glanced at his watch. "Well, I've got to check dinner. You guys can make yourselves at home. TRINITY! They're here! Come on down!"  
  
"Coming" came the reply, and Trinity appeared at the top of the stairs a moment later. She was wearing black jeans and a baby blue top. Her hair was in the traditional braid, and it bounced with her every step as she came down the stairs.  
  
When she reached the bottom, she smiled politely at Quatre and Trowa.  
  
"You've grown quite a bit Miss Trinity." Quatre said, smiling back. "Last time I saw you, you were only two years old."  
  
Trinity grinned. "Well, that was a long time ago." Then her nose wrinkled. "Is something burning Dad?"  
  
Duo's eyes widened as he realized the smell as well. "Ack!" He cried, running out of the room towards the kitchen.  
  
Trinity shook her head. "That's the fourth time he's burnt it. I'll have to help him after."  
  
Quatre snickered. "Duo never was the one to cook while we were on missions during the war. We always thought it was because he was too lazy."  
  
"Oh, it's not that he's a bad cook…" Trinity said. "Its just that he has problems with garlic bread."  
  
The girl then led the three into the sitting room, and they involved themselves in an intelligent conversation. Heero soon joined them.  
  
In about half an hour, the doorbell rang again, at the same time that another cry emerged from the kitchen. Heero and Trinity left the Winner- Bartons, and the girl headed for the door, leaving her father to deal with Duo's troubles.  
  
"Ding Dong"  
  
"Yeah yeah I'm coming, hold your horses." Trinity called, reaching for the handle.  
  
She turned it and the door opened to reveal two very familiar Chinese men.  
  
"Hello Wufei, Ian, please come in." Trinity said icily, stepping out of the way to let them through.  
  
"Weak onna." Wufei muttered as he entered the house.  
  
"I'm better than you'll ever be." The girl retorted, shutting the door behind the two men.  
  
Wufei was about to reply when Heero entered the hallway.  
  
"Nice to see you again Chang." He said, shaking hands with the older of the two guests. He simply nodded at Ian.  
  
While the two older pilots involved themselves in a conversation, Ian turned to Trinity. "Well…"  
  
"Well what?" The girl replied, voice emotionless.  
  
"Did you drop out?" Ian asked.  
  
"No. and I don't intend to. Nothing you can say will change my mind." Trinity turned to head for the sitting room, but Ian cleared his throat and she turned to face him, fixing her glare on the other teen.  
  
"What?" Her voice was now low and menacing.  
  
"You seem to have a nasty bruise Trinity. If you can't protect yourself, you don't deserve to be a preventer. You'll just get in the way and get other people hurt…"  
  
"Click"  
  
Ian found himself with Trinity's gun pointed at his chest. Her hands were steady, and her voice calm.  
  
"Nothing you say to me will persuade me to quit, and if you keep going at this rate, you won't be alive long enough to even utter a word."  
  
Ian's eyes widened in hear as Trinity's finger tightened on the trigger, and a gunshot rang out through the air.  
  
*~*  
  
well, should I leave it off here?  
  
Sherpock-you're forgetting that you just got rid of the angry mob.  
  
Oh yeah…I guess I should keep going then huh? Yeah.  
  
*~*  
  
Ian fell to his knees, eyes closed; waiting for the pain, but it never came. He opened his eyes to find Wufei staring at Trinity, who was now empty handed.  
  
Her gun was lying on the other side of the room, and Heero was pocketing his.  
  
The girl glared at her father, and Heero pointed at the stairs. "In your room. Now."  
  
Wufei's jaw dropped. "She almost killed my son, and all you're doing is sending her to her room?!?"  
  
Heero's Prussian blue eyes met Wufei's and silenced him effectively. "I will deal with Trinity later."  
  
He then offered a hand to Ian, who took it and got to his feet. "I suggest that you let her make her own decisions from now on." Heero said. "If you value your life."  
  
"Yes sir" Ian replied, still a little shaken from the experience.  
  
"And just so you know. She wasn't aiming to kill. She was aiming to cause pain." Heero then headed over to Trinity's forgotten gun, picked it up and placed it on the table.  
  
Duo, Quatre, Trowa and Nate all looked a little surprised, and were standing in the doorway, wondering what was going on.  
  
Heero explained briefly what had happened, then led them all back into the sitting room where they resumed normal conversation.  
  
When dinner was ready, the group of old friends sat themselves at the table. Duo pulled Nate into the kitchen and handed him a tray. "This is for Trin, if you bring it up. There's enough food there for you to eat with her if you want, but you're welcome to come downstairs and eat as well. Her room is the second door on the right at the top of the stairs."  
  
Nate nodded and headed for his destination.  
  
Upon reaching the door, he balanced the tray in one hand and knocked three times with the other.  
  
"Go away." Trinity called out. She wasn't in the mood to be badgered by her fathers.  
  
"I come in peace?"  
  
Recognizing Nate's voice, but not expecting him to have said "I come in peace." Trinity's curiosity took over and she headed over and let him into the room.  
  
Nate entered the room and placed the tray on the table. He noticed that Trinity had changed. She was wearing flannelette pants, and a sweater.  
  
He also noticed her eyes were slightly tearstained. She looked like something was on her mind, and a distant look occupied her eyes.  
  
"Thanks Nate." She mumbled, noticing the tray for the first time.  
  
"Hn. Thank your father." He grunted.  
  
Trinity shook her head and picked through her salad with her fingers. Finding a cucumber, she popped it into her mouth. "You're the one who carried it up here. He's probnablyu downstairs talking." She paused then sighed. "You gonna stay up here for a bit? You probably want to go back down through. They're probably a lot more interesting than I am."  
  
Nate shook his head. "I can't stand get togethers like this. Everyone wants me to talk."  
  
Trinity nodded in understanding and sat down at the table. Nate chose a seat beside her, and she handed him a fork.  
  
The two sat in silence for a few moments, ignoring the empty plates and eating the food out of its serving dishes.  
  
After a while, Trinity sighed and sat back in her chair. Nate looked at her questioningly, and she shook her head.  
  
"you don't want to know."  
  
Nate raised an eyebrow. "Why wouldn't I?"  
  
Trinity sighed again. "As you probably already know, I'm not exactly the most popular kid in school. No one acknowledged me before you and Ian came along, and even then it was only for the sake of our jobs."  
  
As she was looking at her hands, Trinity didn't notice Nate shake his head slightly, his eyes scanning her face, her body, her skin over and over again.  
  
"And now I've been shot twice, Ian's told me I should quit preventers, I'm wondering if my parents are hiding something from me, something about me, and something Ian knows."  
  
Nate knew the "Something" could only be one thing. The cloning,. And, with careful observation, he came to the conclusion that he wasn't the person and this wasn't the place or time to tell her. Instead he gave a low grunt that urged the girl to continue.  
  
"I just don't know what to think anymore." Trinity said with a sigh. "And Duo told me Relena's coming over sometime this week. She's like the mother I never had…Maybe I'll be able to talk to her…But why am I telling all this?" Trinity gave a fake laugh that didn't last very long, and definitely didn't make the situation any more cheerful.  
  
"Oh, what a sad story." A voice, dripping with sarcasm, came from the doorway.  
  
Trinity tensed and her eyes narrowed. "Ian Chang, I have more than one gun." She turned to face the other teenager.  
  
"That's nice. Anyway, just came to, ahem, bid you farewell. My dad and I are taking off. See at the dance on Friday Trini-babe.  
  
Nate stiffened at the last sentence and watched Ian head out the door. He glanced at Trinity, and saw her place her gun on the table.  
  
"Forgot about the dance." She mumbled.  
  
"Don't forget your dress." Came Ian's voice from down the hallway.  
  
"Whatever." Trinity replied. She then looked at Nate. "Want to see it?"  
  
He looked at her questioningly. "See what?"  
  
"The dress silly." She replied, jumping up from her chair.  
  
Nate nodded his head slightly, a new emotion boiling in his heart. He didn't know what it was, but he was quite sure it was a weakness. It went against everything the scientists had told him, as did all emotions.  
  
/…Soldiers don't need emotions. They will only get in the way…/  
  
He could remember them pounding that into his head again and again…never would he forget it.  
  
"Earth to Nate!"  
  
The boy's head snapped up to find Trinity's cobalt blue eyes inches in front of his own.  
  
"You awake in there?" she asked.  
  
"Hn." He replied, breath catching in his throat.  
  
"I'll take that as a yes." The girl said, backing up a few steps. "So what do you think?" she held the dress up against her small frame, and spun around once. It was a shade of light purple, and it was quite long. The fabric was sparkly, and the spaghetti straps were sure to reveal creamy skin. There was a slit on the right so that Trinity would be able to walk. "Well…"  
  
Nate raised one eyebrow. "Nice." He said, voice emotionless.  
  
Trinity sighed and replaced the dress in the closet. "What were you thinking about?"  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Well, I called your name a couple of times, and you never answered." Trinity said, seating herself once again at the table and picking through the salad. She loved cucumbers.  
  
"Hn."  
  
Trinity rolled her eyes. "You need to work on your vocabulary. It wouldn't hurt to lighten up a little you know."  
  
Nate didn't reply and Trinity sighed.  
  
"Ok, tell me what's bugging you and I swear I'll never ask you to talk again."  
  
Nate thought about this for a moment, then decided it couldn't hurt. His parents had been trying to get him to open up for the past few years anyways. Maybe he should try this "lightening up".  
  
"The scientists, they made us."  
  
Trinity had a confused look on her face, so he decided to elaborate a bit.  
  
"They cloned Wufei to make Ian, then Duo and Heero for you, and Quatre and Trowa for me."  
  
Trinity nodded. She'd heard this story before.  
  
"So they took me in to make another "perfect solder", to exceed Heero Yuy's abilities." Once again Trinity nodded.  
  
"They told me emotions were useless for my missions, and Quatre and Trowa, my fathers, tried to tell me otherwise. They told me that the reason they were able to fight again in the Mariemaia incident and come out victorious was because they acted on their emotions, and they knew how to cooperate with each other. They said that following your heart was what made a good pilot. The scientists instructed me to leave them, since they were putting 'false' ideas in my head."  
  
The whole 'speech' had been said in an emotionless voice. Trinity took a minute to sort these things out in her head.  
  
"So you don't know who's right?" she asked, not expecting, (or getting) an answer. Trinity thought for a few more minutes to let this information sink in. Then, an idea hit her. It was worth a shot, and it might just work…  
  
"I've got an idea that might help you." She said, getting up from the table and heading for the door.  
  
"You're supposed to stay in your room." Nate replied.  
  
"I'm sure that you'll find a way to keep me from shooting anyone. Coming or not?"  
  
Nate gave in and followed the girl out the door and through the house, carefully avoiding the kitchen.  
  
They ended up in the woods outside, on a hill top, with the sun just setting in the west.  
  
Nate stood, waiting for Trinity to execute her plan. She was watching the sunset and the skies.  
  
"You'll damage your eyes watching the sun like that." He said in a monotone, as was usual.  
  
Trinity rolled her eyes. "That's not the point. Aren't the colours beautiful?"  
  
"Hn." He replied.  
  
The girl sighed, then glanced at the boy. He too was looking at the sky, the light falling on his face and casting shadows where it couldn't reach.  
  
A warm breeze ruffled the leaves in the trees and circled the two.  
  
Without thinking, Trinity stepped towards him. Placing her hands around his neck, she slowly reached up and pressed her lips against his.  
  
From instinct, Nate stepped back, pulling himself away from the girl. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and turned to walk down the hill, his mind a battle of its own.  
  
"Wait, Nate! I didn't mean to, I'm sorry. I really shouldn't have. Please come back…" Trinity said, following him down the hill.  
  
"Why shouldn't you have?"  
  
Nate had stopped, and Trinity was caught off guard by the question. "Uh…"  
  
Nate's mind was racing…it felt different having someone so close. He wasn't sure if he was supposed to welcome the feeling or not. "Why?"  
  
"I don't know. I just…I don't know."  
  
"You shouldn't have because you're going out with Ian. I shouldn't have let you. Let's pretend it didn't happen."  
  
"Wait a sec. What makes you think I'm going out with Ian?"  
  
"You're going to the dance with him on Friday."  
  
"It's a mission thing. I don't care about Ian that way. I barely care about him at all. Why didn't you want that to happen?"  
  
"The scientists…"  
  
"Who gives a shit? Forget about them, just for one minute."  
  
"Why do you care?"  
  
"I want to help you. I…I don't know. Forget it. Let's go back."  
  
Trinity turned to head down the hill, towards the house.  
  
"Wait."  
  
She turned slowly.  
  
"How?"  
  
Ok, now she was confused. "How what?" For that one second, he had sounded so helpless…  
  
"How do I forget?"  
  
Trinity smiled slightly. "You have to listen to your heart." Trinity said.  
  
The two stood in silence for a few moments before Nate muttered something.  
  
"What was that?"  
  
Trinity didn't have time to react before Nate's lips were pressed against hers once more.  
  
*~*  
  
"Duo, put down the binoculars." Quatre scolded. The two were on the roof with Heero and Trowa. They'd heard Trinity and Nate leaving the house, and Duo had decided to put the binoculars to good use.  
  
"Why should I? So you can use them?" The 'retired' gundam pilot demanded with a smirk, eyes never leaving the binoculars.  
  
"Duo…if Trinity found out about this…" The blond warned.  
  
"Put them down Duo." Heero commanded. His voice unwavering.  
  
"But…"  
  
"Now."  
  
"Fine." Duo's shoulders hunched as eh sighed and put the binoculars on the roof beside him. Leaning back on the gently sloping shingles, his eyes searched the skies for the first star to appear. "I kinda miss being up in outer space." Duo commented. "Seeing earth from up there."  
  
"It would be nice to go up and enjoy the beauty of it without having to worry about fighting." Quatre put in. He was sitting beside Trowa, and their eyes were directed towards the sunset.  
  
Heero was standing, leaning against the chimney.  
  
As it was, no one saw the form that was dressed in black slip in the house through one of the open first floor windows.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
sorry to leave another cliff hanger, but I have yet to decide who the "black form" is. Please let me know what you think!!!  
  
~ Aria 


	9. Problems Encountered

*sighs* Sherpock-yes you have to write this. But. Sherpock-no buts. Fine. Disclaimer-I don't own it so don't sue. Happy?  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Chapter 9  
  
Problems Encountered  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Heero awoke the next morning at 5:30 sharp. It was the same as any other morning. Rummaging through his clothes, he chose an outfit and headed for the bathroom which was down the hall.  
  
Trinity got up at 6:00, and hearing Heero in the kitchen downstairs, she too chose something to wear, and took her turn in the bathroom.  
  
You'd think that a pattern would occur, and Duo would be out of bed by 6:30. Well, usually he'd only get up at 10. But today was going to be different.  
  
Trinity was heading back to her room after her shower, and she'd just closed her door behind her when an explosion rocked the house, sending everything into disaster. Trinity quickly regained her balance, then poked her head out her door, and glancing down the hall to the right, the sight that met her eyes caused them to widen in fear. "DAD!!" She cried out, but before she could run to Duo's aid, someone grabbed her from behind and stuck something under her nose. Trinity was unconscious within seconds, not having time to think.  
  
*~*  
  
Heero, on the other hand, was running up the stairs to see what had happened. He arrived to find Trinity's door shut, he called out to his daughter, but got no response. Not having time to worry about her, Heero headed for his and Duo's room. The flames were spreading quickly, and since it looked as if the bomb had been planted in their room, it was most likely that Duo was in danger.  
  
*~*  
  
Fire truck sirens blared as they raced towards the Yuy-Maxwell residence. The house was burning from the explosion, the police were already there. When the fire was out, they carried out an investigation. Trinity had not been found, dead or alive.  
  
"What do you mean you don't know where she is?" Heero demanded.  
  
The police man trembled with fear. Heero was still recognized as a highly trained Gundam pilot, and it was not known to get him angry. "W-we can't find her, sir." The police man replied.  
  
They were standing in the hospital, and Duo was in critical condition. Heero hadn't heard much more than "We'll tell you when we know." About his husband, and he'd been here for over an hour. And now Trinity was missing. He was sure that she would have gotten out of the house, but why hadn't she shown up?  
  
Heero sat down on one of the uncomfortable hospital waiting chairs after thanking the police man. He needed to sort through some of the thoughts in his head. What he needed was his laptop. But it had been caught in the explosion.  
  
He was going to have a lot of paperwork to do. The insurance company was not going to be pleased.  
  
*~*  
  
Trinity awoke in a prison cell, much like the ones Heero and Duo had been kept in during the wars. Noting the old fashioned style, with steel doors, and no windows, Trinity decided she was on a military base of some sort. She didn't remember much, and her head was throbbing.  
  
She was unarmed, and her hair was a mess.  
  
But that was the least of her worries as she remembered the explosion.  
  
"Dad." She mumbled, sitting up slowly, her pounding head forcing her to take it easy. She scooted back so she was leaning against a wall of the cell. She couldn't see much, as there was no light, and she hadn't had time after her shower to replace her watch on her wrist.  
  
With no idea of the time or date, Trinity sat back to wait for her captors to inform her of why and where she was being held.  
  
*~*  
  
"Mr. Heero Yuy?"  
  
Heero lifted his gaze to meet that of a young female nurse. "Yes?" he replied, hopes soaring that he would be notified of Duo's condition.  
  
"I need you to fill out these forms." She said, sympathy in her eyes.  
  
Heero grunted as he took the clip board and pen from the nurse, and attempted to fill out the information. Of course, knowing hospital forms, most of the questions were unrelated to the situation.  
  
"Is he allergic to any medicines? Does it matter? They've probably already crammed him full of everything." Heero grumbled as he scribbled facts down on the paper in his messy hand writing, making it as illegible as possible without having to worry about them asking him to do it over.  
  
*~*  
  
The door of Trinity's cell opened, and a uniformed soldier stepped in. "Trinity Yuy-Maxwell." He said, as he noticed the girl was glaring up at him from the ground. "Come with me."  
  
Trinity glared at that soldier for all she was worth, following him, her hands chained together with a black pair of handcuffs. Three of the soldiers were escorting her to God knows where. "Where are you taking me?" She growled, as she continued walking.  
  
"His excellency wishes to question you." The soldier replied, as he turned down a hallway, typed something into a keypad beside a door, and when the door slid open, he stepped into a . well, questioning room.  
  
The walls were a dull gray colour, and there was a simple desk in the centre, and there were two chairs. The soldiers sat Trinity in one of them, then stood around, waiting for "his excellency" to make an appearance.  
  
Trinity's thoughts were racing. It couldn't possibly be Treize Kushrenada, Wufei had killed him in the final battle of the gundams, before the Mariemaia incident. His excellency? This was definitely *not* making sense.  
  
*~*  
  
Heero stood at the counter of the hospital cafeteria. Glancing at his watch, he read 10:45. No news of Duo and Trinity still hadn't shown up. Taking the coffee he'd ordered from the lady behind the counter, Heero sat at one of the tables, sipping it slowly.  
  
"Heero?"  
  
Heero looked up. "Relena." He replied.  
  
The girl sat beside him. "What."  
  
Heero sighed, placing his coffee on the table. He looked into the warm blue eyes of his long time friend. "We're not sure what happened. There was a bomb set in our room, it went off at 6:30. Trinity's missing, and Duo's in critical condition."  
  
Relena's eyes were wide. "But." sighing, she leaned back in her chair. "Trinity's missing?"  
  
Heero simply nodded.  
  
"But.she would have shown up. Something must have happened to her."  
  
Heero quirked an eyebrow. "Are you saying she was kidnapped?"  
  
"I never said that, but it is possible, isn't it? I mean, well.I guess there's no real explanation, but it would make sense, wouldn't it?"  
  
Heero nodded again.  
  
"I think you should contact the others."  
  
"The others?"  
  
"Wufei, Quatre, and Trowa. Nate and Ian should probably know as well."  
  
Heero stood, drinking the last of his coffee and tossing the cup in a nearby garbage can. "I'll do that." He said, as he headed out of the cafeteria to find a pay phone.  
  
He found one soon enough, but realized he didn't know the other pilot's numbers. Shaking his head, he dialled preventer headquarters, a number he hadn't had to use for almost 13 years.  
  
*~*  
  
Trinity's eyes went wide as Ian walked into the room. "Hello Trinity." He said, setting a brief case down on the desk.  
  
"I-Ian?"  
  
Ian ignored her comment, rustling through the papers of his brief case. "I do believe I have some questions for you Trinity. Or should I say, Trin?"  
  
Trinity's eyes narrowed. "Only Duo can call me that. You have no right."  
  
Ian sighed, shaking his head, an exasperated look in his eyes, as if he was dealing with a small child. "I'm the one in charge now Trinity. And you will listen to me."  
  
"Then you're the one who planted the bomb in our house. Duo could be dead for all I know. What do you want with me?" She growled, glaring at her 'partner'.  
  
"You'll find out soon enough what I want from you, but you were starting to catch on. You almost killed me. I tried to warn you to drop out, but no, you wouldn't listen. So now I'll have to deal with you in a different way."  
  
"Are you this, excellency?" Trinity asked, deciding to try to get as much information out of this conversation as was possible.  
  
"No, I am questioning you for his excellency, and I'm sure he'll be most pleased if you cooperate like a nice little girl."  
  
Trinity shook her head. "A nice little girl? You've lost your mind Ian. I'm a gundam pilot. I know how to take care of myself."  
  
"So you admit to being a gundam pilot?"  
  
Trinity cursed to herself. Questioning 101, never give the other side information if you don't have to. Not that Ian hadn't known that anyway. "Yes I do, actually." Trinity replied slowly, thinking about what she was saying now that she'd made her first mistake. "What time is it? And what day?"  
  
Ian glanced at his watch. "3:00, day after the explosion."  
  
Trinity thought this through as he continued searching through the brief case. "Duo." she mumbled, not knowing if he was alive or dead.  
  
"Why'd you set a bomb in our house?"  
  
"To distract Heero Yuy, so that we could be certain we'd get a hold of you." Ian muttered, closing the briefcase. "Do you recognize this person?"  
  
Trinity glanced at the picture. It was a photo of Relena's brother, Milliardo Peacecraft. He was currently on Mars, working for something for Relena. Now the question was, why was Ian asking her this? Did it really matter that much? "Yeah, why?"  
  
"No reason." Ian answered. "Do you know where he is?"  
  
"No idea."  
  
Ian looked at her sceptically for a minute, before accepting her answer.  
  
Trinity's thoughts were definitely not on this conversation. Duo had been hurt, possibly killed, because she hadn't dropped out. She'd endangered his life, as well as Heero's. Some way for a daughter to act. She chided herself, Ian occupied with something else for the moment. Wait a sec, since when was there another person in the room?  
  
Trinity's eyes widened as she recognized the girl from the club the other day, the one that had been with Ian and Nate. Her short blond hair hung in her heavily lined eyes.  
  
"I'm needed elsewhere. I'll finish the questioning later." Ian said, ordering the guards to take Trinity back to the cell, where they deposited her none too gently.  
  
*~*  
  
Nate's office phone rang once, and he picked up on the second ring. "Nate Winner-Barton." He said, not expecting Heero's voice on the other line.  
  
"Hello Nate."  
  
"Mr. Yuy?"  
  
"I have some bad news. There was an explosion in our house this morning, and Duo's been hurt. He's in critical condition. Trinity's missing."  
  
Nate thought this over for a minute. "You're at the hospital?"  
  
Heero grunted a reply.  
  
"I'll be over soon, and I'll let Quatre and Trowa know."  
  
"Do me a favour and inform Ian as well. I'm going to call Wufei."  
  
"Yes sir."  
  
The line went dead. Heero picked up the phone again, dialling the home phone number of Wufei Chang, which he had gotten from Preventers.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Wufei, it's Heero."  
  
"Is there something wrong Yuy?"  
  
Heero explained once more the situation he found himself in, and told Wufei about Nate telling Quatre, Trowa, and Ian.  
  
"But Ian didn't go to work today."  
  
"He didn't?"  
  
"No, he told me he had a mission, but he refused to tell me where it was, and what it was for. He did say something about a Catalonia."  
  
Heero thanked Wufei, asking him to tell Ian when he got home. Pilot 01 then returned to the waiting room to do the only thing he could do. Sit back and wait. Only difference was he wasn't waiting alone anymore. Relena was here with him, and the emotional support she provided was welcomed with open arms.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
There, that's another chapter. Whoa, talk about plot twist. Don't ask where that came from. His excellency? My mind works in weird ways.  
  
I'm sorry I didn't update for so long!! I really am!!  
  
Anyway, leave a review, please!  
  
~ Duo's Only Chick 


	10. Planning

Disclaimer-I don't own it so don't sue.  
  
AN-oi.once again, a long wait for the updates. I hope to get the internet connected to my computer so I don't have to use the family one for much longer. I hate having to share it, as selfish as that may seem. *grins*  
  
Chapter 10  
  
Heero let a soft sigh escape his lips as he leaned back in the uncomfortable hospital chair that was positioned beside Duo's bed. The braided man was lying, almost lifeless, hooked up to almost a million machines. Heero had finally heard about his husband, and the news hadn't been comforting.  
  
Duo had several severe burns, and he'd had to have a skin transfer to the area where the explosion had hit him the hardest. He was still unconscious from the surgery, but even after the heavy drugs wore off, the doctors had warned Heero that there wasn't much hope of him waking up.  
  
And Trinity was still missing.  
  
Heero sighed again. In the time span of one day, his close to perfect life had been blown into a billion pieces and tossed out the window.not to mention blown away in the wind. He reached over and took Duo's pale hand in his, rubbing his thumb over the back of the pale skin, closing his eyes and losing himself in his thoughts.  
  
*~*  
  
Relena glared at the secretary behind the counter of preventer's headquarters. "What do you mean there's no way she could have been kidnapped? She's missing, isn't she? And it's a possibility. I need to speak to someone who will at least listen to me."  
  
"I'm sorry, Miss Peacecraft, but I can't allow you to speak to Miss Po. She's busy at the moment. She's attending a very important meeting."  
  
"Then you can bring me to see Lucrezia Noin, or Lady Une. I will not let this matter go unnoticed."  
  
The secretary behind the desk shook her head. "Miss Noin is out on a mission, and Colonel Une is in the same meeting that Miss Po is attending."  
  
"Is there someone that I CAN talk to?" Relena asked, about to give up hope.. something she didn't do very often. But the situation was looking pretty bleak. "When is the meeting over?"  
  
The secretary brought up a schedule. "The meeting will be finished in two hours, and then there's the shuttle ride back here."  
  
Relena raised one eyebrow. "Shuttle ride?"  
  
"Well, yes. The meeting was held on Colony L4."  
  
Relena shook her head. 'Why didn't you mention this before?"  
  
The secretary shrugged. Relena pushed aside the urge to strangle her.  
  
"I will speak with you, Miss Relena." A quiet voice came from the other side of the room, close to the elevator doors.  
  
Relena spun around, and her eyes widened in shock as her gaze met the intensity of his own. Blond hair with a tinge of reddish-brown fell into aqua-marine eyes that were almost identical to those of Quatre Winner, though they lacked the inner sparkle that accompanied Sandrock's pilot wherever he went.  
  
The teenager walked closer towards her, and extended his hand stiffly. "Agent Winner-Barton." He said, flashing his badge. "I'd like to speak to you, if you have a moment to spare."  
  
Relena nodded. Heero had told her about Nate and Ian. "I'd be glad to." She shot a warning glance at the secretary. "You are to contact me once they get back, is that clear?"  
  
The secretary nodded, eyes wide at the power hidden beneath the woman's surface. She watched Relena and Nate head into the elevator, and listened to the quiet "bing" That signified that they were moving. She then wrote herself a memo that Noin, Sally, and Lady Une were to be notified as soon as possible that Miss Relena wanted to speak to them. She did not want to make this young woman angry.and it seemed in her better interest to do as she asked. After all, it WAS her job.  
  
*~*  
  
Trinity drifted off to sleep unwillingly, but she figured she'd already lost track of time, so it didn't really matter.  
  
Her head was still throbbing when she awoke some time later, now having completely surrendered to the blackness that surrounded her. She had no idea of time or date, or how long she had been asleep, or how long she was going to be kept for. She was dreading this encounter with 'his excellency', and she wasn't sure if she could handle it. She did know that she needed to get out of here, and she needed to get out fast.  
  
She didn't know how long she was held in the cell. Some meals were brought to her, though it was not much. Though the water was welcomed, it was usually warm, or stale..or both.  
  
She spent what seem like timeless periods trying to come up with a scheme to escape, but her efforts were in vain. Her meals were delivered under extreme surveillance, and she didn't have any weapons. The cell door was locked from the outside, and the lock mechanism did not appear on the inside. The door was sealed shut, and it seemed like it was going to stay that way.  
  
The only way she would be able to escape was during the trip to the questioning room, or if she got help from the outside. And now that she knew Ian was working against them, she didn't have much hope.  
  
Her thoughts strayed to her parents, and to Nate..and to Relena, who she hadn't gotten to see. She was supposed to arrive the day that the explosion happened.though who knows how long ago that was. She sighed for what seemed like the millionth time since she'd been captured. She missed her home, and her bed.Closing her eyes, Trinity drifted off once again into a disturbed and uncomfortable sleep.  
  
*~*  
  
Relena thanked Nate for his time as she stepped out of his office. He had explained some of the situation that Heero had not been able to rely to her.Things about Danny, and about what Ian had been saying to Trinity. This Ian didn't seem very loyal to his team mates, though it could have been a hormone thing. Relena shook her head. This was all very confusing. She didn't know why Trinity would have been kidnapped in the first place.  
  
She descended in the elevator, glared at the secretary, then headed back to the hospital to tell Heero the news.  
  
She reached the hospital, and exited her traditional pink limo, smiling her thanks at Pagan.  
  
Finding Heero in Duo's room, she explained all that she had found out in a quiet voice.  
  
Heero nodded when she had finished. "I see." He tightened his grip on Duo's hand. We'll find her, Duo.I promise. He vowed, both to himself, and to his husband.  
  
*~*  
  
A week later, just as Trinity was thinking of them, Heero, Relena and Nate got together to decide what to do. Relena had managed to meet with Lady Une, Lieutenant Noin, and Sally Po, and they had agreed to support her all the way. Nate had volunteered to be a part of the planning team. Ian had been missing for a few days, but no one was anywhere close to guessing where he really was.  
  
"Ok." Nate started, shuffling through some papers. "I've done some extended research, and based on the type of bomb that was set in your house, Mr. Yuy, I would have to say that Trinity's been captured by a terrorist group."  
  
"Yuy-Maxwell, actually." Heero corrected him. "But I'd prefer Heero."  
  
Nate nodded. "Alright. Then I've found a few possibilities, as well as their locations. The biggest one is set on colony ."  
  
And the conversation continued from there. They decided on a rescue plan, and a date for the rescue plan, but as an author, I'm afraid I'm not eligible to relay any of this information to you. *grins evilly*  
  
But don't get mad at me..it's the muse's fault.  
  
*~*  
  
Trinity was woken up rather rudely by a soldier of some sort as she was dragged off to be questioned once more.  
  
She soon found herself in a different questioning room, though it much resembled the one where Ian had confronted her. She sat, silent as the soldiers tried to get information out of her. She refused to answer to them.  
  
So, as it ended, they resorted to calling up "His Excellency".  
  
A few moments later, Trinity watched with growing anticipation as the door swung open.  
  
A heavy man walked in, but one of his features surprised Trinity to no end. His eyes were a deep shade of brown.a deep shade of brown that looked startlingly familiar.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Muahahaha!!! This is fun.I love cliffhangers, don't you?  
  
Anyway, don't forget about the review that you were planning on leaving.. (  
  
~ Duo's Only Chick 


	11. Escape

Disclaimer:  
  
I do not own this topic, these characters, their plight. I'm not making any money, my imagination simply took flight.  
  
I'm sorry for this madness, Please excuse this mess. But suing is not worth it, I'm a student, I must confess.  
  
So go away, leave me alone, (After reading, of course. And while we're on that subject, A review would be nice, unforced.)  
  
So, this was my disclaimer, I hope you're happy now. Sherpock made me write it, Go blame him, the cow!  
  
Hehe. That was my new disclaimer-poem. What can I say? I got bored in English class. Anywho.on with things. I'm terribly sorry about the long wait between updates, but I just can't seem to find any inspiration. I hope that no one's too upset. Please forgive me! I didn't mean any harm!  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Chapter Eleven  
  
A few moments later, Trinity watched with growing anticipation as the door swung open.  
  
A heavy man walked in, but one of his features surprised Trinity to no end. His eyes were a deep shade of brown.a deep shade of brown that looked startlingly familiar.  
  
Those eyes. she thought frantically. They're just like Danny's.  
  
The man raised one eyebrow at the scrawny girl. "Ian considered you a threat?" He snorted. "I'll have to have a word with him. First of all, girls are incapable of piloting gundams, it's a proven fact. Second of all.you're too small to be of any harm. I do believe my son actually shot you. Hm. I wonder why Chang was so worried?"  
  
Trinity's anger was close to boiling over. "There's a lot about me that you don't know. I can do serious damage with Deathscythe, trust me."  
  
The man nodded. "So I've heard. Your ... fathers .... Duo Maxwell and Heero Yuy. Am I correct? Pilots 01 and 02. Very impressive. And I suppose they trained you."  
  
Trinity fixed a neutral expression on her face, cloaking her anger for the moment. She may have been stubborn, but she wasn't about to make the same mistake twice. Questioning 101, never let the enemy know any extra information.  
  
However, it would seem plausible that this man could be the father of Danny. He certainly held the family resemblance. It seemed that their family wasn't too well off in the morals department. Two drug dealers, and a crazy old man calling himself 'his excellency'. Maybe she should try to get some information out of him? If she ever got out of this place (where ever it was) it might come in handy. Never in her career of working for preventers had she heard of him.  
  
"So..........how do you get away with calling yourself 'his excellency'? I mean, what have you got to do with Treize Kushrenada?" She asked casually, struggling against the bonds that held her in her chair.  
  
The man ruffled through some papers on the desk that occupied the room. "I will be doing the questioning here." He stated with an air of finality.  
  
Trinity suppressed a sigh. Well, it was worth a shot. I'll try again later.  
  
"Now, I do have a few questions for you, and you'll find that they're mostly related with the Preventers. I understand you're working for them?"  
  
The neutral expression remained in place. Trinity didn't show any signs of answering any time soon.  
  
"His Excellency" glared at the girl, and then motioned at one of his guards.  
  
The soldier mechanically cocked his gun, holding it against the side of Trinity's head, a look of sadness in his eyes.  
  
"I am a trained gundam pilot." Trinity stated. "You should do well to remember not to underestimate gundam pilots, no matter what their size may be." With one swift movement, Trinity stood up, and with a kick to the head, the soldier beside her dropped to the ground, unconscious.  
  
The handcuffs that had held the girl's hands behind her back dropped to the ground as she jumped out of the way of another of the soldiers, dodged an attack, heading steadily for the door.  
  
"Stop her!" 'His Excellency' cried to his men as he backed away from Trinity, reaching for the alarm button beneath the desk.  
  
Seeing his intentions, Trinity managed to swipe a gun from one of the soldiers that were advancing on her, and pointed it at the older man. "Move another inch closer to me, and his excellency dies." Trinity growled, pulling the safety off of the weapon. "And you." She said menacingly. "Don't even think about touching that button, or you'll get a bullet through your head. Step away from the desk."  
  
He didn't have much choice but to listen to the girl.  
  
"Stand in the corner, all of you. And drop your weapons." She commanded, her voice cold and calm.  
  
They obeyed, and Trinity moved to kick the various sized guns to the other side of the room. The soldiers had been unprepared for someone of her training, willing to give up her own life without a second thought, rather than give up any information. They didn't have any way to counteract such commitment.  
  
Trinity backed up, so that she was leaning against the door, and her planned escape route. "You." She pointed at the nearest guard. "Are going to lead me to a mobile suit. I expect that you do have some here?"  
  
The guard nodded meekly, and headed for the door, where Trinity nudged him with her gun. "Get moving." She growled, shoving him out of the room with one last meaningful glance at Danny's father.  
  
Trinity was led down a hallway, and as soon as they rounded a corner, an alarm sounded throughout the building, red lights flashing and sirens blaring. "Move, fast." She growled at the guard, and they took off at a run down the hallway. They managed to avoid capture for a short while, but numbers soon outweighed Trinity, and she found herself surrounded by soldiers. "Shoot me then." She said, throwing the gun to the ground, her hands dropping to her sides. "Because I'm not going to tell you anything."  
  
"I'm afraid not." One of the soldiers replied. "We have orders to keep you alive."  
  
"I'll take her back to the prison cell, sir." Another offered.  
  
"I won't have anyone taking her alone. Three, at the least, should accompany you, Barton."  
  
Trinity's ears perked up at the name Barton, and she glanced around for the soldier. Her suspicions had been correct. It was Nate. Those eyes were simply unmistakably his.  
  
Barton nodded.  
  
"Your entrance exam stated that you should have more sense than to suggest that."  
  
"It won't happen again sir. I suppose her appearance can be deceiving."  
  
Trinity smirked. "Damn straight. Now, if you boys don't mind getting your acts together.so that we don't have to stand in this stupid hallway longer than would be necessary." It should be easy enough for Nate and I to take out two of their kind.They're making this too easy. And how did he know I would be here?  
  
The officer in charge glared at the girl. "Barton, take Williams and Martin with you. I hope you will keep things under control.."  
  
Nate saluted the officer, and advanced towards Trinity, handcuffing her. "Sorry." He muttered, so that only she would hear. "But I expect you'll be able to fight with these on anyway."  
  
Trinity nodded slightly. "We'll talk later."  
  
"Agreed." He then raised his voice. "Williams, Martin.follow me."  
  
As soon as they were out of hearing range of the other soldiers, the two precautionary guards were unconscious, and Nate was shoving them into Trinity's cell.  
  
"No one will even miss them.Or you, until its too late." He grunted as he shut and locked the door. "C'mon, I've got a shuttle. Yuy's waiting for us there"  
  
Trinity nodded, and allowed Nate to lead her down the hall, his gun raised against her back. They looked as if he was simply leading a prisoner to a separate room. No one suspected a thing.  
  
Until it was too late, of course.  
  
*~*  
  
Nate removed the handcuffs from Trinity's wrists once they were safely inside the shuttle, and Heero used a stolen security code to allow them to leave the colony without any suspicions being aroused. The girl sent a grateful look at her fellow preventer with a muttered 'thanks' before the two joined her father in the cockpit.  
  
"How's Duo?" Trinity asked as soon as they reached him.  
  
Heero remained silent, and switched the shuttle to auto pilot, leading them back into the passenger section.  
  
"Dad.I deserve to know."  
  
Heero sighed. "He hasn't woken up yet, and the doctors don't know if he will. And even if he does, there's no guarantee that he'll be in the right mind. But you need to know that I still love him, and I always will."  
  
Trinity held back her tears, as she hugged her father tightly. "We'll take care of him together, and we'll both love him."  
  
The man managed a small smile. "I know we will, Trinity."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Ok, that would be chapter eleven. I hope everyone liked it. Please leave a review. And is it just me? Or are people not updating their fics anymore? *sighs* I need reading material people! Write write write!!  
  
~ Duo's Only Chick 


	12. Ending

All right...it's been how long since I updated this fic? And yet today I get a review, asking me to continue. So I figure, what the heck, might as well write one last chapter and get it over with.

Yeah, the formatting sucks on the first few chapters, and yeah, it's horrible writing from some of my earlier days, but the plot is semi-good...so anywho, here's the last chapter of Daughter of Two. Those of you reading, thanks for sticking with me, and thanks goes out to everyone who reviewed. (you must be out of your minds or something...this fic is weak).

Daughter of Two - Ending

Trinity sighed tiredly as she headed down towards the hospital cafeteria. The coins in her hand paid for two coffees before she absentmindedly made her way back towards Duo's room. It had been a week since the downfall of Danny's 'family business'. Thanks to her evidence, Preventers had managed to make a few arrests. Three weeks had passed since Nate and Heero had helped with her escape. 

She reached Duo's room soon enough, offering Heero one of the Styrofoam cups silently as she took a loyal seat beside him.

The Japanese man nodded his thanks, tightening his hold on Duo's hand as he sipped at the black liquid carefully. His tongue was burnt despite his caution, but he was beyond feeling at the moment. Four weeks, and still Duo had shown no signs of improving.

They sat in silence for a few moments before the daughter spoke up. "Ano...Dad...will he ever..."

Heero shook his head slightly, closing his eyes briefly before turning his Prussian gaze on his daughter. "I don't know, Trinity. I honestly don't."

She sighed, sipping at her own drink before resting her head on his shoulder. Heero responded by setting down his coffee before gently slipping an arm around her shoulders. The days went by slowly, merging into weeks, months, years...

Duo was moved into the house, and although they started with an at-home nurse, Heero soon took over all of his lover's needs.

Dutifully, Heero watched over his lover, taking special cautions to care for the beautiful chestnut hair as if it were his own. Every day brought new hope that Duo's amethyst eyes would open, but at night Heero always returned to a cold and lonely bed. Trinity went back to school, but with little enthusiasm. She became as silent as Nate, as reserved as years of training had caused him to be.

Quatre and Trowa had moved in with Heero and Trinity...bringing Nate with them. The blonde had insisted on it mostly for the sake of Heero's health. Though he was diligent in treating Duo, he often forgot about his own needs.

The doctors had assured them that hope remained...but as time crept by, hope seemed like such a lonely thing to cling to.

Nate was confused. Very confused. And last time he had checked, confusion was not a good thing.

See, it had to do with his partner. Trinity.

There was this little matter of him having _emotions_ when he was around her. Well...before** it** happened, anyway. Back when she smiled...

He sighed softly, sitting in front of his laptop, fingers poised over the keys. He was writing up his latest mission report. It wasn't going so well. So far he had typed in HQ's email address. Other than that, he had yet to start.

He leaned back in his chair, running his fingers through his platinum blonde hair as he closed his eyes against the glaring screen. Sighing again, he shut down the machine and got to his feet, intent on heading to the kitchen for something to drink. Perhaps that would refresh him enough that he could get back to work.

However, he took the walk to the kitchen slowly, his hands in his pockets and his gaze thoughtfully on the floor. His mind kept drifting back to that brief moment of ... feeling... that he had experienced with Trinity. She had kissed him....

No one had ever kissed him before. No one had found a _reason_ to kiss him before. She'd said that she had wanted to help him...

That struck an idea in the boy's mind. If she had wanted to help him...perhaps he could return the favor and help her. She'd been so...sad, depressed...he didn't know the right word. He wasn't good at expressing his own emotions, never mind analyzing others.

Damn, but he was confused.

And last time he had checked, confusion was not a good thing.

Trinity looked up from the kitchen table as Nate entered the room. She had long ago gotten used to his quiet presence in her house, along with Quatre and Trowa. Their decision to move in to help her father had touched her, and she was grateful. Alone, she would not have been able to deal, with Duo as he was and a depressed Heero.

Her cobalt blue eyes met his aquamarine briefly before she looked away, staring back down at the newspaper spread out before her. She flipped the page half-heartedly, barely registering the fact that he had chosen to sit beside her once he'd gotten himself a glass of water.

"Trinity..." he started, sounding unsure of himself.

This caused the girl to look up, her eyes widened only slightly. The only one who called her by name with that tone of voice was Quatre...and usually he was overly concerned when that happened. "Yeah?" she asked softly, brushing a stray strand of hair from her eyes.

His fingers curled around his glass, his eyes focused only on the liquid contained within its barriers. "I want to help you," he said, finally looking up to meet her gaze.

She blinked. That phrase sounded so familiar. Where had she heard it before?

The memory of their shared kiss flitted through her memory, and she gave a soft sigh. She remembered feeling happy at that moment. Happiness had evaded her lately.

"I don't think you can help me, Nate," she admitted quietly, fingering the closest corner of the newspaper between her forefinger and thumb. She watched, entranced, as it curled upwards. The texture was soft under the pad of her thumb...the tips of her fingers were absorbing the black ink. "Not unless you can make everything better again. Not unless you can change things back to the way they were before."

Nate shook his head, and without much thought he responded, "No, Trinity. I can't do those things for you. But..." Here he hesitated, his eyes finally lifting for a brief moment to lock with hers before they lowered again. "Change is inevitable. Sometimes we just have to learn how to deal with it."

Trinity sighed, and flipped to the next page in the paper. "I dunno, Nate. I just don't think that happiness is possible anymore. Dad....Dad's starting to give up hope. He doesn't show it a lot, but I can tell. All he ever does is sit in Duo's room staring at the motionless form of my second father. He's pale as a ghost, he hardly eats...Duo was his other half. Neither of them can survive without the other."

She was about to continue when a startled cry sounded from upstairs, and both Trinity and Nate jumped to their feet. "That was Quatre's voice," Nate said softly. "He was in watching Duo while Heero slept."

Trinity was up the stairs in no time at all, her heart pounding in her chest. Was this the end? Had Duo himself given up hope? What would happen to her family now? Heero wouldn't be able to keep going without Duo...

And then Trinity was in Duo's room, and Trinity's cobalt eyes were wide with surprise as they landed on open violet ones...

She was crying, sobbing into Nate's shoulder as Heero shoved past them and reached his husband's bed, his own tears streaming down his cheeks as he wrapped his fingers with Duo's, giving a choked sob as his grip was returned.

"Guess you guys missed me, huh? How long have I been out anyway?" Duo croaked, his voice sounding like a beautiful melody to all occupants of the room. Quatre was sporting his own tears, Trowa standing nearby as a comfort that everyone recognized.

Love had been what had kept them alive through the war. It had been their love that had kept them together for this long. And it was love that had all of them alive and breathing in this room right now.

Trinity didn't know how long she stood there, wrapped in Nate's comforting embrace, her tears soaking into the shoulder of his shirt. She didn't know how long it was until Duo fell asleep again, and she didn't know how long it was before Nate led her back to her own room.

All she knew was that everything was going to be okay. She was going to make it through this, and Heero was going to make it through this, and Duo was going to make it through this.

Their family was still as strong as ever...stronger than it had ever been. Ties had been connected with Wufei and Quatre and Trowa, and Trinity knew that this was merely an extension of Duo and Heero's strength.

They could finally be a family again. They could finally be happy again.

And in Trinity's future, the only day when she felt that happiness to the same extent as when Duo's weak voice had sounded for the first time in three years was when Nate proposed and she accepted.

There were more tears and there was more happiness...

But the most important thing was that there would always be love.

There would always be love.

THE END


End file.
